


Through These Walls

by RedXD



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Bullying, Closeted Teen, Fluff, Highschool AU, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, all the good shit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-15
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2019-08-02 11:04:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 15,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16303970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedXD/pseuds/RedXD
Summary: After seeing Virgil without his walls and defenses, Roman starts to see him in a whole new light.





	1. I Hate Bathrooms

**Author's Note:**

> This is for writers block so dont expect regular updates

Virgil didn’t move. He let himself lean up against the dirty bathroom wall while on the disgusting bathroom floor.

Deegan and his friends had left the boys bathroom around three minutes ago. They still kept managing to lay a nasty punch on him, no matter how hard he tried to avoid them.

Items were scattered everywhere. Virgil couldn’t see his english paper.  _ They probably flushed it. _ Lazily crawling across the floor, he retrieved all his thrown around books and papers. With a quick zip, his backpack is back to normal.

_ RING! _

The bell.. that was the second one. He was late. Virgil sighs and walks into a stall. Might as well just ditch this period. Nobody likes being questioned about why they had so many bruises. So instead, Virgil sits on the closed toilet seat and began to add more concealer. He uses his phone as a mirror. Eventually, it looks okay.

What to do, what to do. A sudden, but common voice speaks, it seathes through.

**Do it.**

**Add another scar or two.**

**No one will notice.**

**You have until class ends.**

A nod to himself. He quickly digs around for a small gray pocket knife. It shines gloomily in the dim bathroom. Virgil begins to sing quietly as he presses the knife to his cold, pale skin.

 

_ “I've missed your calls for months it seems _ __   
_ Don't realize how mean I can be _ __   
_ 'Cause I can sometimes treat the people _ __   
_ That I love like jewelry _ __   
_ 'Cause I can change my mind each day _ __   
_ I didn't mean to try you on _ __   
_ But I still know your birthday _ _   
_ __ And your mother's favorite song,”

 

Acid tears pour from his eyes as he cries, still singing. He lets down his broken walls for a moment and his emotions pour out like water.

 

_ “So I'm sorry to my unknown lover _ __   
_ Sorry that I can't believe that anybody ever really _ __   
_ Starts to fall in love with me _ __   
_ Sorry to my unknown lover _ __   
_ Sorry I could be so blind _ __   
_ Didn't mean to leave you _ __   
_ And all of the things that we had behind _ __   
_ Ooh _ __   
_ Ooh _ _   
_ __ Ooh,”

 

Virgil thinks he hears the door click and pauses for a moment. After a few seconds of silence, he sighs, relieved, and continues. By now he is digging for bandages to patch up his arms.

 

_ “I run away when things are good _ __   
_ And never really understood _ __   
_ The way you laid your eyes on me _ __   
_ In ways that no one ever could _ __   
_ And so it seems I broke your heart _ __   
_ My ignorance has struck again _ __   
_ I failed to see it from the start _ _   
_ __ And tore you open 'til the end,”

 

His singing isn’t really quiet anymore, but it isn’t loud enough that any outsider should hear. He wasn’t some professional songwriter or anything, but he did like music. A lot. It was a great way to deal with his large bubbles of anxiety.

 

_ “And I'm sorry to my unknown lover _ __   
_ Sorry that I can't believe that anybody ever really _ __   
_ Starts to fall in love with me _ __   
_ Sorry to my unknown lover _ __   
_ Sorry I could be so blind _ __   
_ Didn't mean to leave you _ _   
_ __ And all of the things that we had behind,”

 

He packs up his supplies and zips his bag up. Taking out a small black oil pastel, Virgil started to draw a small doodle on the stall door. He decided on drawing a small shadow hanging.

 

_ “And someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ __   
_ But someone isn't me _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ _   
_ __ But someone isn't me,”

 

A swift flick of the wrist. A drag of the pastel. He continues to sing as he doodles. Once completed with the doodle, he grabs his bag and exits the stall to wash his hands. 

 

_ “Sorry to my unknown lover _ __   
_ Sorry that I can't believe that anybody ever really _ __   
_ Starts to fall in love with me _ __   
_ Sorry to my unknown lover _ __   
_ Sorry I could be so blind _ __   
_ Didn't mean to leave you _ _   
_ __ And all of the things that we had behind,”

 

Cold water floods over his dark smudged hands. Dark inky water flows down from his fingers. The feeling is joyous.. in it’s own way.

 

_ “And someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ __   
_ But someone isn't me _ __   
_ And someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ __   
_ Someone will love you _ _   
_ __ But someone isn't me”

 

Virgil dries his hands as he sings the last note. When he finishes Halsey's song, a stall door bursts open. He jumps from being scared and falls to the floor. 

“Ow..”

A boy in a red football jacket runs over to him from the stall. The stranger leans down and out stretches his hand.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to scare y- VIRGIL?!”

Said boy focuses and immediately feels all the color drain from his face. Fucking hell. HAD ROMAN PRINCE HEARD EVERYTHING?!

A recent memory from just this morning comes into his mind.

 

==

 

He lets his books drop onto the desk with a ‘BLAM!’ 

“Quieter please, Brad Pitiful.” Another nickname. Virgil hated them.  _ Roman _ would never understand what a fucking trigger they can be. He has it perfect. Popular, rich, good student. Roman doesn’t know what it’s like to lay on the bathroom floor, broken and numb. To feel anxiety and self doubt crawl up his veins until he drowns in it. To never be called his actual  _ fucking  _ name.

“Fuck you.” Virgil mumbles before slumping into his seat. Not a second later, he feels a small weight hit his head. Sighing, he turns around. No surprise. Deegan’s friend Jaxon usually threw notes or spitballs at him. He leant down and grabbed the ball of paper. Unfolding the jumbled mess, he reads (to himself):

 

‘Dear Fag,

We’d appreciate if you’d go fuck yourself already. No one will care as no one  _ wants _ you here. Thank you and goodnight.’

 

As random as it is, Virgil still feels a sting of pain in his heart. Even so, he puts on his usual expressionless face. With a quick turn of his head and flick of his wrist, the paper is in the trash can. 

The teacher- Mr. Williams- walks inside and begins to write on the board. “Class, today we will be reading chapter 34 aloud. Who would like to begin?”

Deegan whisper shouts, “Virgil wants to!” Roman nods in agreement to that.

Virgil’s frown deepens and he whispers to Roman. “If you want someone to read it so bad, you read it.” He bites. 

Roman turns his head slightly and rolls his eyes. “You should go, Surely Temple, because we both know you never participate in class usually.”

Biting back a hiss, Virgil raises his hand. He participates all the time! It’s not  _ his _ fault that this class has demons out to get him. 

Mr. Williams calls on him. “Virgil? Would you like to start?”

“I uh. Can I go to the bathroom?”

A nod. Virgil bolts up and rushes out towards the bathroom. He didn’t think this through fully, did he? He  _ was _ going to read, but whatever. Too late now.

A few minutes later, Deegan, Jaxon, and their friends show up. 

 

==

 

Virgil looks at the extended hand. No way. Too dangerous. He slaps it away and stands up on his own. 

Roman flinches and straightens up. “I didn’t know you liked to sing, Dr. Gloom.” Pure curiosity is painted on his face.

The smaller boy glares and turns on his heel. “Doesn’t matter. Go ahead and show Deegan or something. He’s already ruined my life.”

And with that, Virgil slouched out of the bathroom and to his current period. Late is better than gone. Light-headed, he went on his way.

 

—

 

Roman frowns as the bell rings. Jaxon and Virgil still weren’t back. He decides to go check on them.

Walking down the crowded hall, he sees Deegan and his gang. They all smirk as they pass him quickly.

Wha-? That was weird. Was Virgil still in the bathroom? Had he even gone to the bathroom? Why did he even care? He should just head to class. Or maybe..

He ended up at the bathroom. Roman stares at the door. The bell rings. Well too late now. Or is it? He can probably still make it to class. What sort of prince would he be showing up late like some sort of delinquent? At the same time.. he was pretty curious. Was Virgil even in there? 

A moment later, he hears a soft noise from inside. Roman almost doesn’t even catch it. He continues to hear it and quietly opens the door. 

 

_ “And your mother’s favorite song..” _

 

Someone’s singing? He closes the door gently and tiptoes towards the voice. It was coming from the very last stall. It sounded sorta like.. Virgil?

His voice was a little raspy, but had a unique softness to it. Slightly deep, but smooth. It was soothing to listen to. How long had Virgil known how to sing? Since when did he like Halsey? Why was he not in class? 

Roman quickly slips into a stall nearer to Virgil. Virgil stops for a second, but soon enough starts again.

There’s small sounds of shuffling and moving. What was Virgil doing? 

By now his singing was not so quiet and the shuffling had changed to a different sound. It sounded like Virgil was dragging chalk or something on a surface. Was he?

Once he gets to the last time the chorus comes in, Roman hears a door click. Some footsteps. Then the sound of rushing water. It was in the background as Virgil sang, adding to the entire thing. It was almost like an instrument with it.

Sadly, the song comes to an end and Virgil finishes. Roman however, decides to burst out of the stall. He sees Virgil jump in shock and land straight ass on the floor. 

Roman walks over quickly offering his hand. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to scare y- VIRGIL?!” 

What the fuck. Virgil looked like a mess. He didn’t look like this in the last class. 

“Sorry I didn’t mean to scare y-” Oh my god it was Virgil singing. “VIRGIL?”

Roman watched as Virgil slapped his hand away and stood. He didn’t really know how to word his question.

“I didn’t know you liked to sing, Dr. Gloom...” He was still surprised this boy could sing so.. so well.

When Virgil spoke it sounded weak and tired, it kinda worried Roman. “Doesn’t matter. Go ahead and show Deegan or something. He’s already ruined my life.” 

Then the boy was walking away, moving very slowly, and very.. weakly. Why was Roman feeling so worried? Maybe guilty? Virgil never looked ok, but he was definitely worse than when he has left the classroom. And he can’t help but think it’s his fault.

Roman decided to head to class, realizing he was late he broke into a sprint. 

 

—

 

Virgil walks down the hall, clutching tight at his backpack strap. He has his earbuds in blasting MCR as loud as possible. 

Sadly.. it doesn’t block out much. 

“Oh look it’s The Emo Virgin!” A voice sounding like Deegan calls behind him.

He grits his teeth and keeps his head down. His hands dig deeper into the pockets of his hoodie. 

“Emo! Virgin! It’s Virgil the Emo Virgin!” Deegan’s friends sing after him. 

His teeth bite down on his lip. Virgil feels too many eyes on him as he walks down the hall. 

As the song ends, he catches a few whispers. 

“Why are his clothes so trashy?”

“He’s such a fucking emo.”

“Virgin? Not surprising.”

Thankfully, a new song starts up and the music blocks out the rest of the whispers.

He walks out the main entrance and does a sharp turn towards the side of the school. Once there he glances behind him. 

No one. Good.

He sits down behind a bench and takes out his sketchbook. Propping it up on his knees, he starts to sketch a drawing of trypophobia. It ends up looking a lot like the beast from Over the Garden Wall, but he doesn’t mind.

Virgil sketches a few different characters from Beauty and the Beast. It’s his favorite Disney Princess movie. The main focus is not judging appearance which is something he wishes people at his school would do. Black Cauldron and Nightmare before Christmas are still the best movies ever made from Disney though.

Sighing, he leans against the back of the bench. Virgil hums quietly This is Halloween. He sees the blur of students filing out in the distance. It slowly grows smaller and smaller until he sees no one. 

His eyes begin to droop so he closes them. Virgil feels sleep take him away before he has the chance to stop it.

 

—

 

Roman groans as he slams his locker closed. He walks through the halls and catches the end of some sort of song.

“Virgin!” 

Confusion filled him. What is happening?

He shuffles through the crowd to see Deegan and his friends cackling at something near the front entrance. He tries to see what, but people block his view. Roman pushes through the many students and stops in front of Deegan.

“What are you laughing about?”

Deegan simply grins snidely at him. “Oh  _ nothing _ .” He dawls. Roman always got reminded of a snake by Deegan. 

“Uh huh. Well please keep the mad cackling to yourself than.” He tuts. Roman walks off towards the auditorium. 

 

Roman sighs as he tugs on the strap of his backpack. Play practice is finally over and he feels exhausted. He walks by the side of the school when a small figure catches his eyes.

Curled up behind a bench is a boy. Roman walks closer. 

Virgil.

He squats beside him. Virgil doesn’t say anything.

Roman glances over and almost has a heart attack. 

Virgil is sleeping soundly, head leaning against the back of the bench. He lets out soft snores. He looks so small and cute.. His bangs hang over his eyes. Roman pushes them out of his face and smiles at the peaceful look on Virgil’s face. He looks adorable. 

A small notebook lays open in his lap. Roman carefully grabs it and glances at what’s written.

..or drawn.

Roman’s eyes widen at sketches of Belle, Beast, and Gaston. Each detail is captured perfectly. He glances to make sure Virgil is still asleep and then flips the page. He sees a drawing of something similar to the beast from Over the Garden Wall with the word ‘Trypophobia’ written in scratchy, sharp handwriting below it. Woah. He flips the page again. He sees a drawing of a bird that he guessed is a hummingbird. 

He flips through loads of pages seeing animals to skeletons to flowers to fictional characters. Each sketch is detailed and precise, popping out of the page. 

“Mmm..” 

Roman glances and sees Virgil stirring. He flips the sketchbook back to the Beauty and the Beast sketches. He writes a small ‘Good Artwork!’ on the corner of the page and slides it back into the shorter boys lap.

With a quick push, he stands to his feet and walks down the path.

Maybe Virgil wasn’t a complete villain..


	2. Coffee Shops and People Needed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The school theatre production needs more members.

Virgil groans as he rubs his eyes. Had he fallen asleep? Oh just great. He looks down to his sketchbook. Grabbing his pencil he quickly adds a small signature on the page. Wait what is..

_ Good Artwork! _

He freezes. He knows he didn’t write this.. So who did?

Gulping down a bucket of worry, he closes his sketchbook and shoves it in his backpack. His feet patter on the dirt as he rushes home.

 

—

 

Roman knocks impatiently on Patton’s door.

“Padre!” He calls.

The door creaks and it pushes open. Logan stands there.

“Why hello, Roman.”

A groan bubbles from his throat. “Where’s your boyfriend?”

Logan adjusts his glasses. “Patton is in the restroom. He was just at his father’s work.”

“Oh yeah! How’s Emile?” Roman chirps. 

“He’s perfectly fine. Is there something Patton or I could do for you?” 

Roman walks past Logan inside and flops on the couch. “The crew for the play this year is low! They’re thinking of canceling the performance!” 

A voice enters the conversation. “The ‘purr-formance?’” 

He moves his head to see Patton wearing the cat hoodie Logan got him last year. 

“Was the ‘joke’ needed in this scenario, Patton?”

Said boy giggles and kisses Logan’s cheek. “Always!” 

“gUys!” Roman whines.

Patton turns to him. “Ro, me and Lo were planning to go meet up with a few college buddies! You could come along and ask if any of them are willing to help.”

Roman jumps up and hugs Patton. “Thank you, Padre!”

 

—

 

The group of three walks into the coffee shop to see it almost completely empty. The only people there is a barista and two people at the stools talking with the barista.

Roman only recognizes Joan. They’ve met before due to Joan being Thomas’s best friend and Thomas being Logan’s brother.

The other two people are girls. The barista has long black hair, the bangs died a crimson color. She has pale skin and crystal blue eyes. The other girl next to Joan has short blonde hair and tan skin. Her eyes are a dark brown-green.

Patton whispers in his ear excitedly. “The barista is Analise and the one next the Joan is Leora.”

Roman nods. They walk up to the counter. All three people turn to look at the three friends.

The blonde-Leora- smiles and waves. “Hey Pat, Lo! Who’s this?” 

Joan gives him a two finger wave. “Yo.”

Patton bounces excitedly. “Guys, this is our friend Roman!”

The barista- Analise nods in welcome. “Anything you guys want to drink or eat?” Her voice is soft and quiet.

His eyes scan the list of drinks. “I would like a- What in the goddess Aphrodite’s name is a ‘Legendary Pumpkin Skittle?!’”

“That’s quite an obsurd name.” Logan adjusts his tie.

Patton giggles. “Is that what you named the drink you guys made?”

Leora laughs awkwardly. “Heh, yeah. It’s kind of a weird story, Ana and I got drunk one night after I lost a job offer. I was super bummed about it so we drank. Eventually, in our drunk state we craved coffee. We made a drink together without actually paying attention to ingredients. Next thing you know we actually made a really interesting, but yummy drink.” Analise and her share smiles.

Roman smiles at the pair. “I’ll have a Caramel Latte.”

“Coming right up.” Analise takes Patton’s and Logan’s (ew black coffee, why Logan?) orders. 

“So I was actually wanting to ask something. Are any of you all willing to help out my high school’s play this year? The theatre crew is running a little too short this year, I’m afraid.” He sighs dramatically and leans back into a chair.

Joan shakes their head with a sorry face. “Can’t help ya this year. My buddy Thomas and I are working on some things lately.”

Leora crosses her arms and nods along with Joan. “I’m not much of a theatre expert. Plus I have to continue my search for a good Psychologist job.” She smiles apologetically at him.

“I can’t help myself, but my cousin is super artsy. He’s a bit of a theatre fan. You actually might know him, he goes to that high school a few blocks away.” Analise explains as she mixes Patton’s drink.

Roman all but jumps into the air. “Oh hat’s fantastic! Do you think he would be free to come over here right now?” 

Analise takes her phone out. “Probably, I’ll call.”

 

—

 

Virgil groans as he hears his phone buzz around his room. 

“Where the fuck is my phone?”

He spots a small light from under a pile of sketches.  _ How’d my phone end up there? _

With a slick pull, he grabs his phone from under the sketches. Fortunately, the papers don’t fly off the desk. 

“Ana? Why is she calling me?” Virgil clicks accept and puts the phone to his ear.

“Yo.” He plops onto his bed.

“Hey Cuz. You free right now?” Mumbled voices can be heard in the background.  _ Is she at work? _

He glances around the room. “Uhhh..”

She chuckles. “I’m going to take that as a yes. May you meet me at the coffeeshop, please?” 

Seeing as he has nothing better to do, Virgil shrugs. “I guess. See ya soon.”

 

—

 

“He’s on his way.” 

Roman twirls his hand. “Magnificent!” 

The group drinks their coffees and chit-chat.

A thought pops in his head.

“Wait- what’s your cousins name?”

 

—

 

Virgil hops off his motorcycle. The silver shines in the bright sun. He shoves his hands in his pockets and walks towards the small building.

He’s hot in his hoodie, but it’s the price he has to pay for protection. 

As he opens the door to the coffee shop, he hears a familiar voice ask, “-What’s your cousins name?”

“Who’s name?” Virgil chimes.

Analise turns to look at him. “VIRGIL!”

The person who talked before turns around and- WAIT IS THAT ROMAN?! 

“VIRGIL!?”

“ROMAN?!”


	3. Rejection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things go.. NOT well

Roman stares blankly at Virgil. Virgil is Analise’s cousin?! 

“Do you two already know each other?” Leora butts in.

Virgil’s frown deepens. He ‘tsks’ and walks behind the counter. “Yes… unfortunately.” He sits on the counter.

_ Why in Heather Chandler’s Scrunchie is he sitting on the counter? _

Wai-

“UNFORTUNATELY?!” Roman gasps. “I could say the same thing about you, Brad Pitiful!” 

Joan whispers a, “Roman uses Nickname.” Roman ignores their comment.

Virgil scoffs. “I’m aware of that, Sir Sings-a-lot.” 

“Virgil counters Nickname with Nickname 2.0.” Joan whispers.

“Ha! I like that nickname and I’m going to use it now.” Roman smirks in victory.

“The counter fails.” 

Patton puts his hands up to try and pause them. “C’mon kiddos, let’s stop with the nicknames. Nick isn’t even here anyways.” He grins at his awful joke.

Logan slaps a hand to his face. Analise giggles. Leora gives a pitty smile. Virgil’s frown lessens. Joan chuckles a little bit. Roman rolls his eyes with a smile. 

“That ‘joke’ was quite horrendous, however I do agree that you two should stop fighting.” Logan states ‘matter of factly.’

Virgil rolls his eyes. “It’s barely a fight. We’re just agreeing that we dislike slash hate each other.” He crosses his arms. Analise hands him a large black coffee. He nods in thanks. 

Leora narrows her eyes. “Do you hate each other, or are you saying that to reflect mixed feelings?” 

_ Wait what. _

Everyone’s silent in question for her to continue.

She sighs. “Like with little kids who just developed a crush?” She looks at Logan. “C’mon, you can explain this too.” 

_HOLD UP! CRUSH?! ON THAT EMO?! ABORT!_ _NO!_

He nods and sips his coffee. “What Leora is speaking of is known as reflection of feeling.” He sips again. “There’s two kinds. The unconcious mindset, and the therapy method. However, she is speaking of he first kind. Basically, the c-”

_ Oh Macbeth. _

Virgil interrupts him. “Whatever that nonsense is, we actually hate each other so it isn’t some sort of lie.” 

_ Thank Hamilton. _

Leora nods, while Logan frowns, but nods nonetheless. 

An awkward silence falls over the group. 

Analise breaks it. “So um, Virge, Roman here was actually needing some help.”

_ shit. _

With a suddenly amused face, Virgil sips his coffee. “Oh?”

_ Crap crap crappity crap. _

Roman clears his throat. “Yes, the theatre department needs more stage crew members.” 

“Oh.” Virgil looks to the side. “Actually, I don’t really paint or do any of that techie stuff. I can’t even draw. So sorry, but I can’t help ya.” 

_ Liar! You have a massive sketchbook!  _

  
Analise raises an eyebrow. "Virge, don't you dr-"   
  
"Hey Le, how's the job hunting going?" Virgil interrupts.    
  
_ I swear he's hiding something.. why does it matter if I know he draws or not? Isn't he proud?! _ _   
_   
Leora jumps, slightly startled by the sudden question. "Yeah, Liam and his gay ass actually managed to find a few places I can apply."   
  
Virgil sips his drink and jumps off the counter. "Well this was  _ fantastic _ ," Sarcasm drips in his voice as he drops his empty cup into the recycling. "But I'm afraid I'll be taking my leave now."   
  
He leaves without another word.   
  
_ Fuck this, I'm not done. _ _   
_   
Roman waves goodbye and walks out after him.   
  
"Panic! At the everywhere! Wait up!"   
  
He stops in front of a black and grape purple motorcycle. With a pivot of his ankle, he spins around to face me.   
  
"What do  _ you _ want, Princey?"   
  
Roman stops in front of Virgil and puts a hand on his waist. "I know you can help me out here."    
  
Virgil growls and narrows his eyes. "Is that so?"   
  
"Yes! The other day- when you were asleep under the bench," He freezes, mouth hanging open in shock. "I saw some of your sketches! And they're pretty good. That kind of skill could really help out the stage crew and musical production." Roman smiles at him.   
  
"You what."   
  
_ Huh?  _ _   
_   
"I was just saying you should really help us out here! C'mon  _ friend-o _ , live for once!" Roman is getting desperate here. Sure, he has a few siblings and friends that will help out a bit, but with Virgil's help the show could end up working out well.   
  
**"No."** **  
**   
_ What!? _ _   
_   
"You seriously can't help someone out for  _ once _ in your life?!"   
  
**"Fuck off."** **  
**   
"Excuse me?!"   
  
Virgil's fists clench as he glares daggers into Roman's head. He stomps up right in front of Roman and gets up in his face.   
  
**"I'll never help an egotistical brat like you. So. Fuck. Off."** **  
**   
Virgil flips him off and spins around, swiftly hopping on his motorcycle and driving off. All that is left is a confused, angry Roman and an empty parking lot.   
  
_ I take that back. He  _ _ is _ __ that bad.


	4. Artist Needed

Virgil sighs and he plops on his bed.

_I'm such an asshole. He was being nice and I just HAD to go and get scared._

_This is why I don't have friends._

He pops in his earbuds and blasts his Spotify music playlist. It mainly consists of TOP (twenty one pilots), P!ATD (Panic! At the disco), MCR (My chemical romance), SWS (Sleeping with Sirens), & SIO (Set it off).

His mind whirls around and thinks about what he could be doing.

_Fuck it, sketchbook time._

Virgil grabs his sketchbook and begins to doodle. After the sketch is finished, he glances at it.

 _I drew Prince Charming?_ (AN: He didn't draw Roman, he drew actual Disney Prince Charming)

He sighs. With a flick of his hand, his sketchbook closes.

_Ugh I'm bored._

He glances over. The clock reads  _'12:45AM'_

"Ugh. I'm not even tired."

He continues to listen to his music and decides to watch Shane Dawson Conspiracies.

—

Ũ̴̳̭̦̺̒̅̈́̊̏̈͒̄̉͜͝͝n̷̢͙̹̝̖̔͌̉͛̓͌̔̄̀͜ķ̵̭̤͔̗̰̣̔n̸̝̭̗͛̌ơ̶̡̧̛͍̥͈̗̠̠̳̞̭̝͎̹͎̭̄̈̈̈͋̑̑̂̋̊͂̕w̶̨̠͕̭̻͕̬̩̖͔̖̳̑̓̃ń̸̡̨̛͉̞͓̳̩̳̖͓̞̤̣̞̪̉͒͂̒͜ ̴̗̱͕̅̄̿̓̆̐̒͛̎͆̆̈͗̔͘͠P̶̛̗̤̰͔̼͈̬͙̳̥̙͍̤͓̐͐̑̌̈́͛͋̒̍͆̊͑͊͌͘Ö̷͕͚͎̮̱͓̜̖́̇̄́̈́̈́͗V̶̨̬͈̮̪̦̫͎̬̬̞̹̲͛̇͌̈̇̅̕͝͝:̴̨̛̥̜̬̲̘̪̪͍̝̱͖̳͍̘̼̊́́͆̈́͒̆̃͊̿̚͘  
̸̱̝̖̟̥̬̈́͆̊͗͗̉̿̽͒͒̈͂͆͘̚͘  
̵̢̄́Ȉ̷̛̭͚̱̞̲͕̯̘̅͗̊̈́̒ͅ ̸̧̲̠͙͓̜̳͚̅͆͑̒̽͝f̷̻͂̇̒͐ê̶̢̲̠͕̗̱̲͙̜̬̼̜̿͒̓̓̒̐̑̽̊ê̸̢͖̗͖͍̹͍̟̫̘̘͚̇̏͛̾͊̿̇̚̚͘͘͜͝͝ḻ̷̛͉͍̳͓̂̂̓͝ ̸̢͎̼͎̼͉̞̜̌̊̊̇̽̊̄̐̐̒͐͗̃a̵͓̯̹̪̻͓͍̖͇͕̼̯͕̦͂͂̈́̓̌̈́͒̓ͅͅw̷̧̗͙̠̽̅̓̈́̿a̸̛̛̰͚̟̯͛͊͐͌͋̄͗̑͛́͘k̷̡̧̥̓͊̿͛̆̔̊̓̒̿̍͘̕̕ȩ̷͉͍̩̟̬̦̮̹̟̞̳̩̇̏̍̈͑͐̀̉.̷̡̢̀̌͋̇̉̂̏͌̅͌̔̾͑͘̚  
̷̡͖̝͉̙͖̝̣̞̞͌̀͂̋̉̓̚͝͠  
I̶̡̢̧̛̦̣̱͍̤̹̮̾̿͆̓̿̈͋̓͌̔͜ ̸̡̙̺͗̿̇̓̋̅̕ą̵̛͖̘͈̦͈̮̪͔̜̱̃͌͗̍̍̄̊̎̇͜m̸̼̻̤̞̻͖͉̔͑̉̂̃̄͊͆̎͒͠ ̷̝͕̟̩͖̍̿͑̑̐̃̋͒̅̓͠͝͝ȧ̸̜̤̱̩ͅẃ̶̪̳̙̦̣̬̠̺̳͎̒̀̏͒̾̅͋͘͘͠ã̷͚̠̌̄̈́͋k̷̥̹͇͕̙̟̮͎̲̰̗͈͉̘͔͆̿̇́̃̐̈̏͗͜͝͠ȩ̸̳̤̼͍͈̀̽̆͗͗͌̈́̓̚.̸̢̘́͝.̴̧̨̜͔̬͉̰͙̤̳͉̯́̍͛̎̾̌̅̋̇̔̓̑̇͜͝ͅ ̵̭̙͎̗̬̜͕̦̺͕̥͋͛ͅo̶̪͋ḑ̸̱̪͎̼̻̘̦̹̮̖͕̈́̆̋͂̅̌͑̇̇̄̚d̸̛͎͍̲̳̹̝̲̥͊̽̌̈́͒̉͝͝.̷̢̫̥̮͎̻͇̲͈̟̙̮̠̭͔̠̒̊̐̈̃̐̉̀ ̶͍͚͔̰̲̫͚̋̐̿̈Ĭ̵̢̹̜̟̬̬̬̤̹͚͗̃͜ ̷̛̙̼̣̼̪̻̖̱̊̊͋̃̈́̍̌̉̽̏͠͝t̵̹̪̜̞̮̦̬͙̻̬̣̔͌̋̈́͊̅̅̅̎͝h̵̢̧̡̩̜̟̩̹͈͎̠͍̙̺̝̤̅͗͗͌͌o̶̙̱̝̞̼̟̭̝͕̪͓͛̈́̔́̉̈́͂̆́͘̚͜͝ͅų̴̪̳̓͊̎̊͛͂͂͗͝ḡ̷̛͚̗̹̿̑̄͊̒̈́̓̓́̎̏͘h̶̨̢̹̣̠̘̬͂̓̈́̀̈́̐͠͝͠ţ̶̢̨̹͈̲̦̥͇͙̫̿̊̆͛̃̀̽̓ ̷̝͎̠̑̎̐́͐̀̈̈́͂̂̓̆̏͝ͅĮ̷̝̤̩̩̠͔̻͉̺̩̩̳͓͓͖̏̈́͒͌̀̒̓̆͝ ̴̧̡̧̢̛̝̖̮̠̭̩͔̠̅̅̓̌͛̇͊͋̈̊̓̉͘͝͝ͅw̵̨̡̛̞͕͉̟̜͎͈̞͕͖͉̍̄̏̆͂͌̀̄͛͐̂̂̄̄ͅá̴̢̛̛̹̻̥͙̰͙͖͇̝͇͙̞̎͆͗̈́͌́̈́̆̅͗͜͝ͅs̵̙̘̝͂͗̋͛̅̑͗̊̾̒͝͠ͅ ̸͓͓̝͙̹̦͎͙̤̭͓̮̞͔̮͑̒͂̉͗̍͗͑͗͒͘͘͠͝͠g̵̱̯̬̣̤̼̼̜͎̜̳̲͉̼̭̖͋̅̋̿͂͂̏̅̈́̓̚͝o̴̢̧̦͆̓͋̒͗̐̃͌͒̋͊̍͗̕͝͝n̶͉̰͓̟̘̭͕̰̼͕̯̩̺͈̍̿̃̀̅̿̔͗͝e̷̜̞̊̂̓͊̒.̸̨̪͓̗̒̈̏̄̀́̀̈́͂͆̍̚͝ ̷̢̧̨̼̻̙̰͈̙͓̼̙̩̳̠͗́̑́͐̏͝͝I̸̡͓̻̰̱͚̿̅͂̇̔͋͛͆̚͝ ̷̨̦̣̯̻̲̼͙͇̫̘̇͒̂͊̈̒̋͑̄̕͠͝ͅt̶͎͙͕͔̞̀͌̋̅͐̎̈́͘h̶͓̯̖̖͈͈͍̙̣̩͐ͅo̶̫̬̙̼̱͝u̵͇̼͙̖̱͓̙̳͊̅ͅg̵̨̜̉͆̎͂͒̄̅̈̀̾̈̈͜h̵̨̡̖̟͖̱͎͔̩͖̬͓̿̃̌̈͋̎t̸̢͇͖͔̳̟̠̖̥̺̱̲̻̽͌̌̒̎͗̕ ̸͉̞̄̾͐͛̆̄̔͗͆̏͒̄m̶̰̪͔̎́͜y̵̭͋ ̵̢̧̮͕̖̠̰̳̟̞͈͖͈̙̫͈̅̔̃̂̋̿̈́̕f̷̢̺̱̯͍͉̞̉r̷̛̠̞͍̞̯̰̖̰̘̠̱̈̄̍̇͂̽̂̓̚̚͜͝i̷̻̬͖̩̪̘̣͐͂͒͜e̶̛̪̜̬̳͑̂̌̽͂͠n̴̨̛̥͓̺̱̮̂̋̾͛̅̃͠d̵̢̟̲̝̞̩͇̤̥̔̽̅̾̋̊͐͂s̷͓̞͇̓͊̾́͋̊͝ ̶̡̳̤̖̙͈͕̤͉͔̲͆̊̂̉͝h̸̡̜͎̫͙̳͎̞͗͌̔͗̄̎̄̉̀̉͝͝ã̸̛̗̱̔͊̇͊͊̓̍̕͜ͅd̴̾͑̒̐̓̆̈́̏̉̄͒͝ͅ ̶͕͚͇̟̖͍̫̙̋̇̆̅̎̒̒̓̎̓̔͘̚͝l̵̝͚̩̤̳͚̟̻̦̣̳͙̾̏̈́̈̓̚͝͠e̷̱͆̋̑̆̌̈́̐̅͘̕f̶̦̉̈́̉́̾̈́̔͋̃͠ẗ̸̡͍̥͕̤́̓̽̏̍͝ ̸̞̳̦͇͑̔̔͛̐͑͗̊̎̈̌̔͝m̷̨̡̛͈͚̻̩̙̘̳̄̒͌̾ͅȩ̷̨̞̼̙̘̣̫͓̺͔̬̤̤̭̄͋̈́͒̽̏͐̈̽̏̕ ̸͙̮̋̈́̂̑̍͝w̷̢̧̗͔̖̣͔͂͗̍̎̚h̴̩̙̦̲͎̺͓͚͐́̾͋͝ͅȩ̵̡͙̠̙̳̝͕̬̟̍̀̂̕͜ņ̴̡̛͚̳̟͚͖͉͍͇̮͎͕̋̓͝ͅ ̴͕̫̯͓͍͕̯͓̣̲̝̙͊̅͆̈́̒́͆͗̏̚̚͠͠͠t̵̝͔̮̿͐̃̾͒̈́͛͘͝ͅḣ̴̢̲͙͚͈͇̼̲͕͚̲̝͋̌̒̉͑̊̈́̅͊͘͘͘ͅͅę̸̢̡̛͚̠̺̤͔͔̝̺̠͌̓̄͌̎̆͐̽̈́̈́͌ ̸̡͚̺͔̣͇̼̮͓͔̺̦͉̍̅̓̒̆̅͋̽̍̐̓͗̕͘p̷͙̯̘̈́͂̔̌͌̈́̈́̏͐̄͗̚̚e̴̠̿͑͆͂̽̎̕ǫ̷͙̮̲̳̟̮͓͔͔̲̣̼̜͛͊̊͋͑̃̉̏͝p̵̫̂͆̏̾̌͜l̶̟̦̐̔ė̷̢̖̝̯͓̞̤͈̤̙̥̣͒̍̏̓̽̃̒̀̃̚ͅͅ c̵̨̤̿̊͠ͅâ̴̢̮̘̤̭͙̠̹̼̭̜͈̈̈́̔͊͊͛̊͛̄̇̌͝m̴̡͓̯̹͗͌̌̉͋̓̚ĕ̶̢͉̯̮̜͍͚̙̒͊̋̇͘.̶̩̖͕͖̩́̎̄̈́́͋͠ͅ ̷̢̡͕̦͇̟͔̻̳̝̟͈̟͎̯͆̏͜T̸̛̪̯̣̺̙͌̆͠h̵͎̒̀̚e̷̫͍͚̫̻͕͕͖̋͊͐̈̔̇͆̔y̸͙͍͉̳̳̫̦̰̲͋̔ͅ ̵̡̲̱͉̠͖̬̟̥̦͕̀̓̑̊̂̃̉͂̈̌͝͝s̵͕̲̳̺̘̼͎͎̹̞̺̘̩͈̀̂̑͊̿̄̇̿͊̈́͌͂̀͋ͅh̴̨̡̨͔̪̰͕͇̖͎̤̟̱̟̄́̈́͛ȏ̶̢͕̠̥̦͈̥͔̙̗͇̋̈́͐͐̊ͅw̵̯͓̠̟̋̑̒̏̈́͘ȩ̵̡͕̠̭̏̊̇d̶͔̮͈̱͚͉̪̺͙̬̋̑̓̈́̌̌͗͑͆̕͠͝ ̸̧͚͎̳͓͈̰̻̰͚͙͇͈̽̇̒̿͛̍͒͛̆͗̎́̽̚̕ͅu̴̡͖̓̇̐p̶̨̩̺̘̬̝̃̄͐͊͋͗͂͐͠ ̷̡̨̧̛̛̛̣̭̗͚̱̳̦̭͙̞͇̥̅̃̍̊̋̾͜͝͝w̷̛͖̍̄͗͐̂̀͋̾̈̔̆͐͘į̵̤̩̗͍̾̄̽́͌̓̈́̕̚̕͠t̷̹̫̠̘̬̘͇̿̎̊̔̈́̽͌̈́͒̓̇͋̌̓͠͝h̷̬̤͙̤͙̼̩̋̓̈́̐ ̴̞͒̊̅̈́̍̓̐̕͝ẁ̷̧̢̡̢̛̯̫͕͈̗̪̤̠̻̝̝̓̂͝ͅh̴̢̧̢̞̠͉͎̼͚̻̻̺̩̟̻̅̓̾̎̋̽̍͆̚͜͝͠͠i̴̧̙̺̙̖̜̯̯̼̱͐̑͝ţ̸͖̘̜̬̖͙͕̙͎̤̻̅͋̃̍̈́̔̒̈͂́̎͠ͅę̸̧̺̖̙̫̻̘͇̦̖̪̺̿̅̈̓͘͝ ̷̨̺̦̝̙̼͖̥̄̍̂̿̽͘͘̚͝c̶̢̨͈̹͚͇͔̻͚̤̝͓̈́̏̏͛͛̆̽͛̀̅̈́̉͘͠ͅỏ̴̙͕̳͉̠̗̠̱͍̦̙͚̟̬͜a̷̧̛̛͔̜̪̠̤͚͍̍͌̆̈́͆̉̓̈́͂̃͘̕͝ͅt̴̡͚̗͗̊͊̽̈́̽͂̂͐̽̇̄͐š̸̨̨̫̦͔͊͊̎̂̒͘͝ ̷̧̛̲̺͎̦̜̫͍̝̠̱̟̏̆͌̇̍̈́̂͊͐͂̒̚͝ą̷̛̯̳̮̟̘̠̐̽͗̚n̷̛͎̞̼̣̼̎̽̓̇̏̊̀͠d̸̤̰̯̬̽͋̀͛̌̒̈͆̄͠͝ ̸͚͍̲̫̝̋̆͜ͅỊ̶̡̟̲̙͈̲̱͙͓̲̍͊̃͂̅͋̔̊̿̓ ̴̨͕̦̤͎̱̪̺̫̞̬̝̪̺̜̥̇̐̈͊͘f̷̟͎̪̊͒̆͊̒̾͗̍̈̕͘͘l̸̢͇̲̳̜̺̦̝̐ę̴̠̺̔̓͜ͅę̵̭̲̮̦̖̞̭̳̜̘̤̍̏̒͒̓̊̄d̶͍̠̠̥̪̗̤̜̯̮̬̙̞̿̍͘ͅ ̵͉̻̼̬͙͇̝̻̰̝̬͖̾̔͂́̋̓ǫ̵̠͕͓̼͎͇̰̱̯͇͎̩̍n̵̖̣͖̐̍̏̈́́̄̂̕͝͝ļ̸̩̳̻͙̮̦̮͖̥̘̠̐ͅý̵͍͉̖̈́̔͆̕͜ ̵̢̩̻̹̣͇̝̦͍͎͚̯̣̬̹̿͊̈̎̍̾͐̂͛͊̈́̾̈͘̚͠t̶̫͓̫͚̻͚̗͚̦̭̔͐͛̊̇̈́̆͗̓̅̄̕̚o̷̢̤͈̜̜̠̥͔̫̦̺̭̬̬̾̂̆ ̷̢̹̭͛͗̄̾̈̓͛̓̾͐f̶̪̙͗͝a̸̰̲̩̰̪̞̳̘̙̲͕̤̥̝̋̌̔̊͝l̸̢͈͈̘̃̂̋̔͆͘͘͘l̸̢̡̠̳͈̺̗̱͇̉͐͘.̷̗̲͈̰̩̹̾̆̐̏̇̋͋̓̔̈͝

Ī̷̛̖͙͔͇̯̹̰̟̯̙̯̥̣̝̓͝͠ ̵̙͖̗̜̭̆̃͂̈́̍̑͛̍̐̚͝͝͝͠w̶̨̰̙͇͙͇̞̆̄̉̈͘͜͜͠͝͝a̸̛̛̖͉̠͚̜̖̩̤̞̞͆͊̈̈́̊͊̓̅̃̄̐̒s̸͈̼̖͚͖͆͗ ̴̡̟̥͔́̅̂́͝g̶̝͔̫͙̰̞̺̘͎̮͎̫̎ǫ̷̼̝͍̹̣̣͕͉̖̫̓̓̍n̴̢̨͙͖̬̰̗͙̞̞̱̜̞̩̯̑͆͌͐̀̿̋̚͠͝ȩ̴̛̠̟͚̩̖͋͑͋̇͐͑̑̆̈́̐͋͒̕ͅ  
N̵͇̘̰̦̘͍̅̆ǫ̵̢̯̺̦̭̩̗̟̓̓̑̒͆̍̀͒̄̐̆̽͗͋̕͜͝ͅw̷̯̞̮̥̖̝̭̞̙̗̭̮͇͇̭̿̎̃͝ ̸̢̺̩̺͖̺̫͖̮̭̣́͋͊̾̿͜͝Į̵͖͖̓ͅ'̸̢̝͙̠͖͓̺̣͓͈͔̠̈́͂̒̀̃̍̆̏̇͂͘̕m̶̯̼̙̼͇̩̜̦̔̍̃̈́̿̉̽̓͂̇̊͐̂̚ ̴̣̹͔̅͛͌͂̏̾͋͂̋̈́͂͋̚͝͝͝n̶̬̼̩͕͓̿̒̌̉͆̓͜͝o̷̢̢͉̲͓̎t̷͔͈̝̒̅̎̏̚ s̷̞̅̔̎̊̐̓̽̅ơ̸̡̭̱͇̝͎̰͔̤̞͕̜̻͚̈́̓̿̈́̈́͘̕m̶̘̯̥̟̹̙͇̰̐̒̈́̊̑̅̉͆͗̇͑̄͠͠e̶͙͊͊̂̿̑̕͝h̷̛̯͓͇̝͇͛͗̾̏̍̑̈́͆͘o̷̧̧̡̘̮̤̭̞̫̹͚̯̟̓̀̈́̓͊͌͊̋̇̕͠͝w̵̱̫̜̲̖̼̣̅̄

—

Roman groans as he walks to the auditorium.

_Might as well prepare myself for the news that the play is cancelled.. I don't think I gathered enough people.._

He pushes open the doors and sees his fellow theatre geeks.

Taking a seat besides a few of his theatre friends, he taps his finger against his new anxiously.

A hand pats his shoulder. He turns and looks beside him. Sitting beside him is Quia Nova. He's decent acquaintances with her. She considers everyone her friend though.

"It'll be alright. I don't think Remy would cancel the play." She smiles brightly at him.

"She's not wrong. This shit is totally not going down the drain just yet." Roman looks behind Quia to see her girlfriend giving him a peace sign. No one actually knows what her real name is because everyone just calls her VL.

He nods. "Yeah. I'm just a little worried still."

Quia nods and pats his shoulder one last time. "Well, whatever does happen, there's always next year too."

_Next year isn't good enough.._

"Yeah of course!"

Silence ushers over everyone as Remy Siesta, the theatre teacher, enters the classroom.

"Alright bitches, I have arrived." He calls with a Starbucks mocha in his hand.

"I know all of you gals think the play is going to be canceled and I am here to tell you it is-" He holds up a finger, taking a long sip of his drink. "Not."

Everyone sighs in relief and cheers happily.

_Thank the heavens of Evan Hansen._

"Now we will be putting on the musical Singin' In The Rain as planned. Everyone knows their roles, stage crew begin your work and actors go to the back room and wait for me. Roman come see me please." He says with a flick of his Starbucks straw.

Everyone disbands and Roman goes to Remy.

"You needed me?"

Remy looks over his sunglasses. "Yes. I casted you as the lead."

He pits a finger to Roman. "Before you say anything, I need your help as well hun."

Still bubbling in excitement, Roman nods. "Okay?"

"The artist I have usually do the posters cancelled on me and since you managed to get the most extra stage crew people to help out I thought you might be able to find a bitch to draw the posters."

_Virgi- No. Maybe someone else._

Roman nods. "I think I can."

Remy nods and walks towards the back room without another word.

_Time to find an artist._


	5. Hungry and Helped

Virgil pushes around his dinner with his fork.

"Virge, honey, are you okay? You've barely touched your food.." Mimi bites her lip, not sure what to do.

He sighs.  _I can't eat this.. too many calories.._

"I'm not hungry."

She nods. "Okay well, let me know if you get hungry later. Remember Shan and I will be leaving this weekend for the work conference in Chicago, ok?"

Virgil looks at ground with a numb face and heart. "Yeah."

She nods. "Okay well I love you, good night honey."

With a glum nod, he saunters up the stairs to his room.

_I'm so hungry.._

**Doesn't matter. You don't need any more food.**

He sighs and lays on his bed. His silver-emerald eyes stair blankly at the ceiling.

_My stomach hurts.._

**—**

Roman sucks in a big breath after his long explanation.

"So basically, you need to find an artist, but the only one you know is Virgil?" Patton's sunshine voice is calm and leveled.

"Yeah, basically." He runs a hand through his perfectly styled hair. He needs to find an artist stat.

"Kiddo, why don't you just ask Virgil?"

_Ughhh._

"He's annoying and rude. Plus we hate each other, he'd never say yes." Roman runs a hand down his face, frustrated.

"Maybe ask Analise to help?"

_Wait.. that's an idea..._

"THAT'S GENIUS PADRE! Thank you!"

"Anytime kiddo."

With that he hangs up and clicks on the newly sent number he got from Patton.

 **Me:** Hello, m'lady! I request help with something if you could.

 **Analise:** Sure, what is it?

 **Me:** I need Virgil's help with making posters for the school musical, however I feel he will reject the offer if I ask him

 **Analise:** Oh? I'll talk to him. You've seen his art?

 **Me:** Yeah, sort of saw his sketchbook when he didn't realize =_=

 **Analise:** Ah well, I'm glad. He always says his art is terrible, but I can't see it. It's just so pretty. ^u^

 **Me:** Yes indeed

**—**

Analise quickly changes to a different contact.

 **Me:** Virge?

 **Virgie** 🌩 **:** yeah?

 **Me:** Care to meet up tomorrow? I can pick you up from school.

 **Virgie** 🌩 **:** sure. any special occasion?

 **Me:** Just wanna catch up. Want me to bring Le?

 **Virgie** 🌩 **:**  sure i guess. its been a while since us three have hung out. just don't go making me a third wheel.

 **Me:** Of course not ^u^

Now she waits for tomorrow.


	6. Artist Required

Virgil taps his knee impatiently, waiting for his cousin.

"Virge, hello." Analise pokes him gently.

"Hey Ana." He glances at her. "What did you want to talk about. Where's Le?"

"She had class, but," She nods her head towards the entrance to the coffeeshop behind her. "Let's go inside first."

They walk side by side in silence, until they both sit down at a table.

"So Virge, hows school?" She asks.

"Same as usual. What is this about Ana?" Virgil narrows his eyes in suspicion at her.

"Roman mentioned earlier, he needs an artist to design and draw the posters for the musical."

_Damn it._

He groans. "And?"

She sighs. "I think you should be that artist."

He tsks and looks to the side. "That's not happening Ana."

Analise looks at him with a frown. "Virge, do you like to draw?"

He raises an eyebrow. "Yes?"

She crosses her arms, "Do you want a future career in art?"

He bites his lip. "Yes.."

"Then you need to give this a shot."

"Ana y-"

She raises a hand. "No Virge. You realize how much I missed out on in high school? A lot. And trust me, you regret those kind of things forever. So please, you should really give this a shot."

Virgil glances at his hands, unsure. "I.." He sighs and glances up at her. "Okay."


	7. Poster Project

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Underline is Roman  
> Italicized is Virgil  
> Both is Together

Roman smiles widely, waving to his theatre friends. "Bye, Lovelies!"

He feels the vibration of his phone and takes it out.

**Analise - > Me**

**Analise:** Virge agreed ^u^   
 ***Analise** has sent contact  **Virgie** 🌩*

He agreed?  _HE AGREED!_

 **Me:** THANK YOU

Roman saves the contact information and gives the contact the name:  **P!ATEverywhere**

**Me - > P!ATEverywhere**

**Me:** Hello, Brad Pitiful! Analise told me you said yes to helping me. So thank you, young sir! Want to meet up after school tomorrow to work out the details, ect?

 **P!ATEverywhere:** sure

 **Me:** Perfect! I will meet you at the entrance!

 **P!ATEverywhere:** k

He frowns at the very little texted back to him. Not to mention none of the messages are capitalized! Is JDelightful still in preschool?!

With a scoff, Roman walks towards his car.

—

Virgil feels his blood pump and his thoughts subside, wind blowing past him. He parks his motorcycle out of school grounds.

_I don't need someone tagging my main ride._

He walks towards the school feeling as glum as a turkey during thanksgiving.

_Let's see how many panic attacks I have today shall we?_

Sighing, Virgil enters the school.

—

"Virgin Mary over here!" A shove.

"Whatcha waiting for faggot? Need a good dick to suck?" Jaxson leans down, still using his height to try and intimidate Virgil.

_Just leave me alone._

He tries to raise the volume of his music, but it doesn't block out the voices no matter how loud he makes it.

"Even guys don't want to be with you, Faggot!"

"Virgin the emo faggot!" One sing-songs.

_Leave me alone..._

Another shove. "Is lil' emo virgin here gonna cry? You gonna cry? Crybaby little faggot here is so unlovable even his own momma doesn't want him!"

_Please.._

Virgil shoves through them all and runs to the bathroom, locking himself in a stall. Tears spill from his eyes.

_Why me?_

He sobs for a while, before quickly reapplying his eyeshadow.

_Crap I need to meet Princey!_

With a bit of a sprint, he runs to the entrance to find an extremely annoyed Roman.

"What took you so long?!"

He bites his lip and comes up with an excuse. "Got held back by a teacher, doesn't matter." Virgil crosses his arms defensively. "Where are we going to go work this shit out?"

Roman groans and places a hand on his hip, cocking it to the side sassily. "My house."

"Okay. Send me the address." Virgil starts to walk towards his motorcycle, but gets stopped by a hand on his arm.

"Why'd the teacher hold you back?"

He growls, hissing a little bit. "None of your god damn business now just send the address."

With a slight shove, he walks away.

—

_Odd...?_

Roman watches the shorter boy walk away.

**Me - > P!ATEverywhere**

**Me: *** _Address_ *****

**P!ATEverywhere:** k thanks.

He frowns and furrows his brows, walking to his car.

_His eyes look puffy and red. I swear he must've been crying.._

_No_. He shakes his head. He doesn't need to focus on that emo's life. They're only even talking right now because Roman doesn't know of any other artists.

—

Virgil sighs, waiting for Roman to arrive. He shivers at the cold winds. His hoodie might be warm, but after a small stunt this morning (Deegan's friends dumped a soda on him), his jacket had become somewhat moist and cold.

Engines turn off after coming close. He opens his eyes and sees Roman getting out of a red and white sports car.

"Come with me, Count Woelaf."

Growling at the nickname, he follows Princey.

They enter the house and walk up a flight of stairs before turning right. They reach a white door with the words 'Roman' in rainbow lettering on it.

The room itself is bright. Extremely so. Disney and musical posters cover the walls like wallpaper. There's a big canopy bed with a pastel red comforter and sheets. In one corner, there's a desk with things scribbled out and written messily. Next to the desk is a small bin full of scrunched up papers. In the other corner is a dresser, a makeup table and mirror, and a poster that reads 'Gay every Day.'

He chuckles a little to himself at the poster.

Virgil turns to Roman. "Okay, so what is supposed to be on the poster?"

—

Roman watches as Virgil moves his pencil along the paper. The action is simple, yet so graceful.

Each line and curve. He has never been much of an artist, but yet he still felt so connected to this. Maybe it's just because it's for the musical.

"C-Could you stop watching me?" Virgil stutters out quietly. Roman looks up from the paper to his face. Tints of cherry red can be seen under his white foundation.

_He must be embarrassed? Kinda cute.._

He shoves his last thought out of his head and grabs his phone. "You like Halsey right?"

The pencil movement stops. "I-I why'd you think that?"

_'I wonder.'_

He snickers. "You were singing a song from her last week, remember?" He glances over at the shorter boy again.

The cherry red grows darker. "W-What if I like her, huh?!"

Roman hums. "Nothing's wrong with you liking her, I like her too." He clicks shuffle on her profile and Colors plays.

Roman sings along with the songs.

After a few songs, he hears a faint, but still so pretty voice join in.

_ " _ _And taste when you get bored_   
_'Cause I have spent too many nights on dirty bathroom floors,"_

_"_ To find some peace and quiet right behind a wooden door"

_"_ _ He said "please don't go away" _   
_ He said "please don't go away" _   
_ I said "it's too late" _   
_ I said "it's too late" _   
_ He said "please don't go away" _   
_ He said "please don't go away" _   
_ I said "it's too late" _   
_ I said "it's too late"" _

Roman shuts his eyes. Losing himself in the music. The faint sound of a pencil moving across paper can be heard.

_ "And now I can't stop thinking that I can't stop thinking _   
_ That I almost gave you everything _   
_ And now the whole thing's finished and I can't stop wishing _   
_ That I never gave you anything" _

He leans back on his hands, singing loudly and passionately.

" _You wrote 100 letters just for me_  
 _And I find them in my closet in the pockets of my jeans_  
 _Now I'm constantly reminded of the time I was 19_  
 _Every single one's forgotten in a laundromat machine,"_

"Done." Virgil mentions.

Roman pauses the song and opens his eyes. The other boys' shining jewel eyes stare at him. They break eye contact when Roman glances down at the poster.

Roman is drawn in the middle. Wearing a raincoat and singing. The background is a rainy night. The top is the title in large scratchy-yet bubbly-lettering. At the bottom, all the information is displayed.

"So? Good enough?"

"Wow." Roman looks at himself in the poster.

" _That looks exactly like me."_

"Thanks.."

He glances up, realizing he said that aloud.

They both stare at each other for a while before Virgil stands up and starts walking to the door. He turns back towards Roman and gives him a small peace sign before leaving.

Leaving him alone with a poster and a thumping heart.

_Thump. Thump._


	8. Lunch Talks

Virgil stares up angrily at Deegan's friends as they walk out of the bathroom.

Curling in on himself, he locks himself in a stall.

He mumbles to himself.

_"This is gospel, for the fallen ones_   
_Locked away in permanent slumber_   
_Assembling their philosophies_   
_From pieces of broken memories,"_

Hot, salty tears build up in his eyes. His breath falls uneven as he gasps through his sobs.

_"Oh-oh-oh_   
_This is the beat of my heart, this is the beat of my heart_   
_Oh-oh-oh_   
_This is the beat of my heart, this is the beat of my heart_   
_The gnashing teeth and criminal tongues_   
_Conspire against the odds_   
_But they haven't seen the best of us yet,"_

He hears footsteps outside the door and pauses. With a small limp, he sits atop the lidded toilet. Virgil presses a hand against his mouth and waits for the sound of the bathroom door closing.

_"This is gospel for the vagabonds_   
_Ne'er-do-wells and insufferable bastards_   
_Confessing their apostasies_   
_Led away by imperfect impostors,"_

The bell rings for lunch.

Wiping his eyes, he applies eyeshadow and then walks outside to spend his lunch alone.

—

Roman sits at his table, quiet. Valerie and Terrance talk back and forth.

_I want to practice my lines.._   
_Maybe I could go outside?_

Deciding to go for it. He waves bye to his friends and walks outside.

_This is much quieter.. its kinda nice._

He makes his way towards the hill overlooking the track. He expects to be alone, only to be surprised when he sees a figure atop the hill.

_That looks like... Virgil?_

Roman sits beside the dark boy and looks at him.

Virgil continues to stare at the track, silent.

"What do you want Princey?"

"Well originally," Roman chuckles, looking out at the track. "I was coming out here to practice my lines, but hey you're here, might as well chat."

"With me?" Virgil looks at him questioningly.

"Ofcourse, Incredible Sulk."

The darker boy stares at him for a bit, eyes untrusting.

"Okay.."

"So, what are you doing here all by yourself? And where's your lunch?" Roman raises an eyebrow.

"Better than in there," His eyes flicker to the side. "And I finished it already."

The two sit in silence for a long while.

"Everyone loved your poster, even Remy and he's hard to impress most days."

Virgil eyes race over to him. "W-what?"

Roman grins. "I thought you'd like to know. Don't worry I won't tell them who drew it unless you want me to."

"Thanks."

"No problem."


	9. Playful Plans

Virgil smiles as he types along his phone keyboard.

 **romano:** It was a small phase!

 **Me:** i cant believe you had an EMO phase

 **romano:** Atleast I'm out of my emo phase!

 **Me:** it is a choice mind you

 **romano:** uhuh  
 **romano:** So is my 'choice' of gelled hair.

 **Me:** fuck u

 **romano:**  I'm going to bed though, night.

 **Me:** night

Virgil knows he isn't going to sleep, yet for the first time in a while he lays down and falls asleep into a dreamless sleep.

—

Roman takes out his phone.

 **Me - > Emo **™️

 **Me:** Good morning, Code Emo!

 **Emo** ™️: morning princey

 **Me:** I was wondering  
 **Me:** Do you want to hang out at lunch again?

Roman tenses in suspense, unsure of how the other boy will answer.

_I want to try for a friendship with him.._

**Emo** ™️:  depends  
 **Emo** ™️: inside or outside

 **Me:** whatever you prefer

 **Emo** ™️: alright. meet me by the hill we were on a few days ago.

 **Me:** Will do!

He gets ready for school, grin set in place.

_A promising new friendship!_

_—_

Virgil folds in on himself, feeling eyes on him. He reaches his locker only to have someone slam their hand, enclosing him in a small space.

_I can't.. need more space.._

He turns around to come face to face with Jaxson and Deegan.

" _Hello little friend.~"_

The stench of cologne reeks from Jaxson as Deegan stands a little behind, a small deceiving smile in place.

"W-What do you want?" He bites his lip, feeling claustrophobic. Not to mention his fight-or-flight reflex was kicking in and all he wanted was to flee this situation.

_"We want opinions, oh opinions. Can't you give us those friend~"_

Eyebrows raises high in suspicion, Virgil narrows his eyes. "What opinions?"

_"What do you think of my dear friend here~"_

_This smells odd.. somethings.. not right._

"I hate him. You should know that by now.." His eyes flicker from Deegan to Jaxson and back.

Deegan's grimy, slimy smile creeps upwards evilly. His eyes sparkle mischievously.

_"Thank you~ That's_ **_all._ ** _"_

They back up and walk away, leaving a confused Virgil.

Shrugging of the creeping suspicion, he goes back to unlocking his locker.

—  
  


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̸̤̥̻̠̮͚̤̪͑͑̊  
̵̛͍̜̞̹͛͗͋͊̂̓̎̿̎̄̿̄̀̍̀͘͝Ả̷̢̛̳̰͎̞͇͈̱̻̠͉̻͚̭̣͑̈͗̾̂̍̓̔̈́̑͑̍r̴̢͉̰̜̱͇͎͎̼̥̠͇͖̮͌̾̄͂͂̀̌͐ȅ̴͈͕̭̙͛̑͐̾̂́̂̀͜͜ ̶̧̡̛̻̭̳̩͇͔̆͂̍̀̍̚̚y̷̼͆͛̾ơ̸̢̢̲̲̹̠͔͍̻͍̠̮̥͓̮͖͓̩̤̤̜͌̓̒̋̓̌̌́̒͛̄̓̅̚̚͝͠u̶̼͔̣̘̺͈̝̔̆̍̐͜ ̴̢̡̬̗̹͉̯̳͇̠͈͎̐͊͠͝r̶̨̨̨̢̖̗̭͎̝͖̯̮̜̱̳͕̜̘̼̠̝̺̂̌̂̇̓̍̓̐̓͊̇̓͐͊̈̆͒͠ȩ̷͕̰̣̤͉̝͚̖̟̔͒͑̋͊͆͛̄̎̎̇a̷̢͎̅̅̈́́͊̉̆̓̚̚͜͝d̷̢̛̛̜͔̱̙̤͇̦͈̖̹̹̈́̆̌̋̓̌͋͑̔̅͠ͅy̶̧̡̛͇͎͙̼̗̫̩̦̝͓͕̯͍̥͙͙̆̋̍̅̽̈́̒̓̃͛͐͊̋̍̏͌̑̚̚͜͠ͅ ̵̢̡̛͎̦͉͔͕̞̟̰̜̯̠̯̱̟̭͕̑́̇͆ḟ̶̦̥̤̹͙͖͔͕̟̫̯̰̙̳̮̲̖̹͕̽̾ͅǫ̵̮͖̰̠̖̟͇͕̜̹̥̈́̓̔̈̈̐͆̈́̈́͗̂̄̓̕̕ṛ̶̢̨̰͍̰͓̤͚͖̹̩̺͎͖̟̞̈́͋͂̈́̊̽̌̃̋͐͛̕̚͝ ̴̡̛̥̭͓͙̜̬̤̥̭̝̰̫͉̈́͋̍͛̽̃̇͂̋͑͊͑̏̈́̚͝͠͠͝͝ͅr̷̤̙̲͔̰̬͍͚̗͖̰̞͓̃̈́͜e̸̟̖͂͊̎̈́̽͒̉̎͠v̴̺̆͝e̸̡̮̻͍̖̱͓̳̐̽͂̂̾͑͒̒̓̄͆̒̇͠n̶̢̢̦͙̖̝̘̥̘͍̖̱̜̋̽ͅģ̴̪͇̮̼̣͍̼̤͋̈́͆ȩ̴̛̩͖̲̻̠͇͖̯̦͖̈́͆̐͝͝ͅ ̸̢̧͚͈̰͓̥̰̙̒̔̈́̽̏̈́̋̆̾̽͂͛̇̈̏̂͂̽̋̕͘ṉ̶̛͚͔̲͙͈͚̯̬͉̪͖͍̟̖̤̖̮̣̯̜̲̯́̌͗̀͑̓̾͒͋̇̉͗̾͒͗͝ě̴͇̪̦̮̫̝̳̘̝͎̓̏͊̂̋̽̆̽̈́̚̕̚͝v̵̢̧̩͙̮̩̥̳͖͍̥̹̻̝̮̝̮̂̔͑̚͜e̶̦̮̜̱͆͛̄͗͘r̷̨̡̛̛͉̲̘͍͇̰̬͓̯͔͔̯͊͋̿̇̉͆͊͌͝ͅm̶̡̘͓̮̱͈̜̰̱͙͚̤̥͙̞̏̈́̈̃̎̒͐̊̃͝͝͝o̶̡̜̊̌ŗ̷̢̛̫̻͉͇͚̯̪̝͈̠̣͕̯͛̾̎͜ę̴̡̛̛̮̘̞͍̯͕̟̝̥̬͕̰̰̱̳̠̱͖̂̓̎̾͂͋̓͒͒̃̂͊̌̀̕̕͜͠͝ ̸̭̬̳̗̩̞̝̻͚̠̮͖̼̱̝̗̈́̈́̑͜͠m̴̻̆̈́́̈̆̋͗̌̒̌͆͑̊̀y̷̡̨̺̹̤͉̞̭̜̹̱̏͆͆͜ͅ ̶̜̱̖̫͖͖̊̊p̶̧̨̛͚̳̳̰̣̪̰͙̳̟̺̗͒̽̐͋̐͂̔͑͐̂͘͜a̷̢̭̹̩̻͉͉͈̠̠̦͓̤̋̑s̴͎̩̬̮͍͓̭͗͒̋͐̌͊́̆͜͠t̶̢̨̼̱̖̺͇̫̙̬̗͚̩͔̠̻͎̭͒̏͒̿̔̉̍̑͋͐̾͠s̵̛̘͚̘͍͍͚͓̺̘̻͂̇̈́͌͗̈́͒͂̔̚͠͠͝ͅ?̵̨̺̪̳̻͇̘̰̗̖̖̜̦̺͍͙̣̱̿͗̍͗̔̇̆̇  
̵̛̭̼̤̎̉̾̓̐̅͆̾̎̂͠  
̷̡̢̘͕̥̘͈̄̔͂͋̄M̸̜̦̦̻͓̻̪̞̤̗̫̣̈́̒̅̐͑̈́̒̑̓̐͗̓̊ą̷̨̡͔̼̝̳̲͙͈̜͓͙̯͓̰̟͖͉̖̒̽͗̂́͒͊̔̆̋ỷ̷͓̩̦̥̜̍̑̔́̋̋b̶̨̧͖̣̱̤͍͇̹̙͈͍̰̅̎̓̃̓͒̋͂̎̓̒͋̇̕͝ͅȇ̶̡̨͍̞̩̝̮͎̱̘̻̙̦̤͔̙̳́̓͆̈́ ̶͙͖͎̦̻̑͒̔̽͒̎̆̍͘͝Į̷̨̧̨̛̝̠̦̩̪̪̖̱͔̤͚̘̭̠͗͂̓͛͒̏̾̀̚'̴̡̭͔̻̤͚͚̥̤̱̼͉̟̺̤̣̭̪̜̬̭̳̿̉̐̊͐͐͐̃̓̕͝m̶̡̢̛̳̆̒͆̈́̿͊̇̽̃͒͐̌̈́̉̄̀̇̍͠͝ ̸̨̡̡̳̳͍̻̬̬̺̗͓̪̥̬͈̖͔̟̰̓̈́͗̄ͅc̶̨͖̥̮͎͚̯̥͙̠̱̯̞̤̪̹̰̝̝̞͖̱̄͐̇͊̎͛́͛̃̑͒̅͐̅̔̆̆̈́̚͘͝ͅŗ̵̢̖̺̪̞̣̫̥͓̖͍̐̑̂̔a̵̢̮̦̖̦̪̭̼͚̭̭͔͇͓͎̺̎͑ͅẓ̶̢̨͚͉̹̯̼̥̙̘͔͔̩̙̩͕̮̘͈͍̌̎͛̂y̷̛̛̛͙͉͇̔̊̊̉̎̉͘?̸̛̘̅̽͘̚͠ ̵̹̬̟̺͍̜̠̳̙̹͐̾̐͑͐͘ͅI̷̛̛͇̖̫̪̰̖̳̫̝͈̳̬̖̞̰̯̹̣̤̣̓̅̉͛̿͗͂̔̎̈́͂̏̚͝͝͝ ̷̨̧̲̻̦͕̤̝̣͍̫̌́̎͗͑͂̕ͅd̴̗̤͉̖̬̫̳͓͐̇̌̂̑̐͂͑̐̄̑̀͂̓͆̀̈́ͅơ̷̛̳̲͔̝̝͉̩̲̺͙͍̠̙̞͓̺̜̘̳̥̤̆̔͂̾̀͗̑͊̆́̊̄̏̓̕͜͝n̷̡̡̧̺̻̘̜͈͓͙͖͕͋̄̈́̑́̒̏͗̈́͗͊͛͌̐͑͑̄̚͘'̷̛͓̓͛͒͘͘͘͠t̸̡͇̺͈̺̯̦͇͎͈̥͙̬͓̐̏̍̌͌̏͑͆̋̈́́͑͌̑̌̇͘ ̶͎͚́́͛͛̔͌̄͋̐̈͆̐̕̚k̵̡̧͚̳͖̻̤̱̙̤͓͍̥̔̂͌̌̄͂̂͂̒͘̕͜͜n̵̡̳͉̗̩̳̻̏͋̃̈́̅̾͌̓̕̕ơ̸̡̡̨̦͍̫͇̣͚̠̳̗̞̮̟̎̆͐̈́̆̈́̒̑̇̑̃́͗͝w̴̧̞͕̥̪̬͖͖͚̘̳̘̟̙͇̠̻͑̓̽͂̈͂̇̆̉,̵̡̨̘̰̭̣͍̘̙͔̬̰̼͇̮͚̭̭̜͕̮͑͋͆́̊̑͠ ̵̞̞͇̫̞͈̬͉̹̣̠̲͎͉̘͖͚̮̲̠̏̓̍͑̿͗̂̆̎̑t̴͎̰͔̞͇̲̝̲̟͎͔͍͕̣͖̉͑̄͐́̽̆̿͌̎̓͌̎̈́̀̉̌̈́̂̑́h̸̰͙͙̥͓͉̰̮͙͒́́̔ͅę̴̛̤͓̟͇̗̝̗̠͙̓͂͗̏͋͊̾̔͊̀̔̇͌͆̈́̌͗̑̚͜͝ ̸̡̨̡͉͈̣̞̹̘̒̈́̎͑̅͐̐̕͝ͅf̷̱̯̮̙͙͔͖̹͔̻̣̂͑͑̋̇̐̑̎̓̉̍̐̓͂̾̄ͅư̴̯̯̮̳͎̒̔̈͝ͅn̴̢̨̢̢̞͍̗͈̼̫͕͖̪̤̫͕̊̋̚͜͝n̴̹̰̳̬̬̞̺̫͊͆̄̍͒͑y̷͚̜̾͋̈́͊͋̃͗̕͠ ̶͓͈̠̤̼̙̜̤̹̼͈̦̯͍̼̖̄́̌͐̈́̇͛͂͒̏̂̃̅͜ͅm̴͈͓̙͇̼͉͎̿̌̏̋̂̀̀̇̃̔́̎̀̌̿̍̅͘̚͝͝͝e̷̙͔̥̭͕͖̰͉̦̣̳͔̒̓͛̑̕͜͜͝n̵̢̧̝͙̼̠̘͈̫̙͖̩͍̤̺̭̩̜̣͆̋̔̾͌̒̇̄̐̌͘̕̚ͅ ̶̛̟͚̖̖̺͊͛̈́̌͋̐̈́͌͂̓̈́̑̽̾̚į̷̛̼͎̮̞͔̣̖̜̬̘̭̥̥͇̯̟̻̖͎͋̒̓͗̉̃̂͋̄̊̓͒̐̔̃͜n̶̢̜̳͈̩̤̣͉̲̖͇̳̮͈̙̯̖̬͈͚̭̐̓̌ ̶̤̫̤̓̾̑̈̈́̃͐͊̑̀͛͒͆̊͘̕̕͝͝ẇ̶̨̟̦̖̗̗̋͋̓͛͝h̸̡̨͕̼͍̪̩̫̪͓̗̩͙̜̠̩̣͌̏̽̊̓̕ỉ̵͔̫̲̏̈́̄͊̈́͐͑͂͒͛̒́͝t̶̻͎͇̹̼̘̗̀̆̽̌̊̈͘e̸̡̥͇̮͔͈͊̾̓͌̏͊̃͂̿̓́͗̌̓̈́̔̒͋͘̕͘͝ ̴̨̙̮̬̦͈̺̍̎̎̊̽̆̆c̷̢̡̛̲̞̯̰͙͂͌̏͆̈́̀̒̈́̕͠o̴̢̡͔͈̲̟̩̣͇̟̤̯͔̹̯̺̳̭͍͋̀̋̉͋̇̓̐͛̌̅̈́͘̚̚͜͜͝à̵̯̘͖͎̰̥͔̥̥̭̳̔̍͒͐͐̈́̃͘̕͜͝͝͠t̵̨̜̤͈̟̟̗̬̦͉͚̝͍̭̻̠̃̾̆͂͒̔̿͑̾̾̈̄s̶̡̢̛̝̦̣̘̱̬̞̪̮͙̼̹͙̰̭̗͊̿͛̏͗̑̕͜͜ ̷̨͍͎̦͔̬̓̓͒̓̉̍͒̾̎̅̿͝s̷̺͇̗̼̯͍̦̣͚̩̤͕̽̓͒̄͒̀̈̆̍͜͝͠ͅa̴͉̼̣̯̦̘̘͔̟̒̑̿̑̾͗̐̆̋̒̈́̅̎͐i̵̧̢̤͔̪̦̳̫̼̬͈̬̮͚͉̼̫͗̿͜ḋ̴̢̲͍̣̙̣̭̙͉͒̈́̀͝ ̸̡̫͕͈̜̫͈̦̟̘͇̱͕̱̈́̅̈́̈̂͘I̴͈͎̞͕̱̠͒͆͐̐͆̃̃͒̏̊͗͋̇̄̏̄̈́͘̚͠͝ͅ'̸̭̯͕̝̙̖͚͎̭̰̥͕͈͖̰̯͔͍̓̏́̓͜͜͜͠m̸̝̗̫̥̠͂̿̄̊͑̌͂̊̃̚ ̴̨̰͎̖̣͈̣͓̪̠͉̺̠̪̱̼͉̪͓͚̮͕̉͌̉̋̄̿͐̊̆͋͘͜ừ̵̛͔͖̝̞̭͍̻̭̩̜̳̱̱̤̤͒͗̓̔͆̏̓̚͠n̷̡̗̓̓̃s̴̨̨̛̛̯̦̩̣̺̯͈̠̗̲̘͙̣̈́͌̀̓͂͛̄̄̏̂͐̀̆͌̓͗̿͂́̄͝ͅͅt̸̛̹́̿̅̀͂͂̾̽̎̃̀̍͆̔̄̐̆̿͘͠͠a̷̧̭̳͍̬̖̤͎͕͘ͅb̶̡̨̨͕̙̮̲̗͍̆l̷̡̧̡̡͉̩͚̘̙̱͉̯͔͔͚̫̤̱̰͆̂͒̂̐͆̃͑̈́̿̔̉̈́̇͒̓̕͜͝ͅͅe̶̢̼̦̪̗͓̥̠̥͒͝?̶̢̡̟̭͈͈̱̖͓̺̼͔͈̤͎̺̻̰̆̏ͅͅ ̷͖̯̙̈́̒̊̿̂̈́̍͊̑͗̽̿̑͒̐̊͊͐̕B̶̨̢̡̢̡̨̛̠̲͈̱̼̙̼̫̬̮͖͙̗͉̃́̈́̎̐̎̋̐̍͐̓͝͝͝u̴͈̪͇̠͔̝͖͎̇̌̃͝t̶̛̠̝̺̯͚̬̟͖͇͛̅͌̽́̇͊̋͋̊̔͘̚͝͠͝ ̵̢͚̪̣͇̣̼̯͎̬͂̈́̈́͒͋͛͒̃̒͒͊͒̈̃͛̿̒̾͘͘̕a̷̛̼͚̱̮̠̰̳̟͓͈̖̹̹͔͋̂̓̋̾͜͠͠r̸̤̪̥̗͔͐͐̌͋̊͗̈́̃̓͊̽e̷̡̛̯̘͔̖͚͋͛̌̈́͐̐̉̃̀̈́̇͑̅͗̅̅͝͠n̶̛͖̙̹̹̞͎̞̜̣̂͛̾͑͊̽̐̽̿̿̀̕̚͠'̶̤̯̠̻̳̦̳̣̫̯͚͔̠͈̪̹̞̒̐̎͊̇͐̉͑̈́̐̄̽̎̓̆͝t̴̠̺͓̲͙̫̔̄̿̀̅̈́̀̈́̆͛͑̆̎̕̕͝͝͝͝͝ ̴̡̛̖̲̟̓̈̊a̷͒͑̄̈̉͗̍̿͆͆̎̋͜͝͝͝͝l̷̢̧̢̜̺͖͉̭̼̲̳̠̘̦̣̬͉̝̝͙͓̼͗͌̈͊͐͊̾̍̎͌̏͒̾͋̔̍̂͘͠͝l̵̛̛͙͎͚͔̬͎̰͚͖͑͊́̂͋̅̑͗̊̕͠ ̵̛̮̭̀̏̽́̐̓̈́͐̒̊́̌̆̊͋̊͘̕t̵̛͇͎͙͉̜̼̳̖̻̪͍̰̥͕̋͊͐͒̿̇̉͝ḩ̷͖̩̤̄͂̇͑̈́͆̽͋͂̈́͛͗͛͛̈̀̈́̇͘͘͠e̸̡̡̢͈͍̣̳̻̭̘͎͙̭͔͇̱̺̦̝̜̫͔̯͒̾̇͋̋̆͝ ̴̨̞͈̭̝̝̯̌̂͑͗̈́̕͠b̶̨͇̝̗̣̲̯̺͎̪̫͉̰̞̹̬̜̓̎̋̍͋͒ȩ̴̗̬̺̗̺̅̈͛͆̄͛̃̌̽́̆̍̑͊̃̅̀͘͠͝s̶̛̩͉͔͈̺̣̭̪̠̩͕͈͒̐̉͊̈́̅̀̏̉̎́̿̋̓͆̚̚ͅͅt̵̛̫̗̬̀̿̓͊̏͑̉͂̌̿͐͊͘͘͝͝ͅ ̸̡̢̖̝̦̝̗̔̋͋̐̔̎̆͂͒̇̑̃̓͌͊̂̏͛͂͝p̶̡̱̥̪͕͉̹̼̙͚͋͗͑̃̽͐̇̇͌̈́ę̷̨̜͕̪̥̬͕͙̩̯͔̗̠̠̤̳̲̖̮͆̈́̊͜o̸̡̡̢̰͉̩̮̘̘̗͈̺͓͎͈̊̔͊̀̄͆̄͗̑̌̔̆͊̈́̽̈́͑̏̈́͜͠ͅp̷̛̜̮̹͚̪̬͖̖̙̲̲̿͒͑̓̃̍̈͒́̽͗̽̒̊̈́̕͝ͅl̶̪̠̣͈̬̟̠̲̦̤̫̤̩̦̫̰̜̘̜̘̝̘̊̈́̀̓̐̍͌̄ͅȩ̸͙̲̟̰̜͌̊̉̽̂̏̈́̇̅̈́̔  
̷̢̥̬͔͖̺̣̲̯͉̘̹̩̭̞̻͇͇̭̙̼̮͊̒͊̑̈́͒͒̊͆́̿͐͘͠ͅ  
̵̡͔͉̠̻̳̫͍̻̐͆͌͌̈͂ͅ  
̶͕̟̈́̈́̈́̂͐͊̅C̷̢̡̧̬̻̫̤̞̻̦̣̼̠̻̣͍̮̝̰͕͍̄̀̀̑̄͑̐̏̏̌̏͗̓̇̕͘̚͠͝ȑ̷̤̺̤̪̇̆̇͊̈́̒͋̆̏ą̵̼̺̤̄̾̉͛̈́͘͜z̵͕̲͉̺̗̙͈͕̩̙̤̺̟͂͐̚͜y̴̢͓̜̩̖̝̗̰̬͇͔͔̜͂̉͑̄̒͋̍̉͜͝?̶̧̛̗͇̣͙̩̝͈̬̃̈́̊̆͛̈́̈́̃͛͑̋̓̕͘͜͠͠ͅ


	10. Phaseable Friends?

Roman walks into class and spots Virgil sitting at his desk, tense.

"Hello Shadoweaver, why so tense?" He sits on the desk in front of Virgil's.

The other boy yelps at his voice looking up panicked before calming.

"Don't scare me like that Princey."

"Oops. Sorry." Roman moves closer to the other boy. "Are we still planning on meeting at lunch?" He whispers.

A simple nod is all he gets in return.

He moves to his desk right as the teacher enters and announces that they'll be taking a quiz.

This being one of the subjects Roman excels at, he finishes with time to spare.

_I wonder how Virgil is doing on the quiz.._

He glances over to see Virgil done with the quiz, instead choosing to riddle the paper in random doodles.

_Heh. That's adorable._

Ignoring his own thoughts, Roman focuses back to his own desk.

—

Virgil blasts music through his headphones.

_'She told me that she loved me by the water fountain'_

_'One, twenty one guns'_

_'Hope you'll be stabbed in the heart, hope you'll get shot and expire!'_

A tapping interrupts his music. He pauses it.

"Whatcha listening to Zargone?"

_Pfft. Another stupid nickname.. I don't really mind this time though..? Strange.._

"Just my Spotify playlist." He glances over to see Roman sitting beside him with a small bright red lunchbox. It's decorated with fake gems and gold ribbon.

_He's such a kid.. pfft._

"Where's your lunch Hot Topic?"

He immediately thinks of a perfect answer that will:  
1) Put him off topic  
2) Be clever

"Aw, you think I'm hot."

**_No he doesn't._ **   
**_Why would he think someone like_ ** **_ you  _ ** **_is hot?_ **

Roman goes red and crosses his arms looking to the side. "That's not what I meant!"

Virgil simply snickers and looks back at the track.

"I'm serious though, where's your lunch? You couldn't have finished it already?"

_Crap. Crap. Crap. ABORT MISSION! ABORT!_

"I'm just not that hungry right now."

He is suddenly getting pushed down against the grass. Looking up he sees Roman looking down angrily.

"You're lying."

Virgil looks to the side, refusing to meet the other's eyes.

"..."

Roman's voice grows soft and worried. "When was the last time you ate?"

_Technically. Two days ago._

"This morning." He lies, still too scared to meet Roman's eyes.

"Oh yeah? What did you eat? What did it taste like?" He doesn't seem convinced..

Virgil's head moves quickly, eyes challenging.

"Toast. Buttery, soft, and sour. Crunchy too. Two slices."

**_What a little liar you are..._ **

Romansits up, convinced. "Okay okay. Sorry. I suppose I assumed something of you.."

_Another trail cut off. . ._

Virgil avoided the others eyes again. "I think lunch is almost over.. I'm going to head towards my locker and stuff okay?"

The other sighs before nodding. "Yeah okay. See ya later Virge."

_Virge.._

_A friend._


	11. Funny Feelings

Virgil looks at the ceiling.

**_Liar._ **

_Stop._

**_Ugly.._ **

_Stop._

**_Idiot.._ **

Virgil grabs his phone and goes to the contact of his only friend.

**Me - > romano**

**Me:** hey

 **romano:** Hello Virge!

 **Me:** what are you doing rn?

 **romano:** Currently rehearsing at my theatre pal's house!

 **Me:** could i hear?

 **romano:** Like?

 **Me:** yknow. you call me and i hear..?

 **romano:** OH! Of course! Let me just ask the others!

 **Me:** ok

 **romano:** They're okay with it!

**Incoming call from** ** romano **

_ Accept _ _Decline_

Virgil immediately hears a girl yelling, "HI!!"

He rolls his eyes and hears Roman take his phone back. "Hello, Virge! Say Hi to Quia, Valerie, Terrence, and VL!"

_A lot of people..._

_It's fine it's on the phone..?_

He takes a deep breath and says, "Hey."

The others in with Roman say hello and then they go back to practicing.

Virgil listens, but can't help focusing on  Roman only.

_Odd.._

—

Roman says his goodbyes and hangs up. Slowly, he looks up at the four other people all looking at him.

Valerie smirks. "You  _like_ him."

_WHAT!?_

_NO WAY?!_

His jaw drops, utterly surprised.  
"What?! No! He's my friend!"

VL rolls her eyes. "Yeah and your crush."

Roman's eyes flicker back and forth.

_I can't believe them! I don't have a crush on Virge! Do... I?_

Quia pats his shoulder. "It's okay Roman. I was confused at first too. Feelings can be a little funny some times, but I promise you we will support you no matter what." She smiles and Terrence plops on Valerie's bed beside him.

"She's right. You've got friends in us for good."

VL crosses her arms and leans against the wall near the bed. "However, I can spot love between two people easily. There's chemistry there and trust me," She glances at Quia before looking back at Roman.

"You guys like each other more then just 'friends.'"

That sentence continues to roam his mind.

Even after he goes home.

_I like him?_

_Maybe.. I do?_

—

Virgil groans waiting against the wall. The guy with a locker above his is taking a while to pack up.

_Stupid lockers._

Eventually the guy moves and Virgil crouches in front of his locker. He inputs his combo and ' _click!'_

Shoving his books and binder away, he hears footsteps stop right next to him. It's picked up by his ears over the loud chatter of teens.

_Someone else getting their shit probably.._

"Heya Tumblr."

Virgil jumps only for his back to be caught by a wall of two legs. He looks up through his purple bangs to see Roman.

"H-Hey.."

He shifts forward and finishes packing his bag before standing up abruptly.

_I can feel his breath on my neck.._

Moving as slow as a snail, he turns around to be in close proximity with Roman.

"So I was thinking, do you want to hang out? Now?" He steps back a bit, only to be pushed forward into the same spot by the crowd. Roman glances behind him before looking at Virgil again, his golden brown eyes sparkling in hope.

_Too close.._

Heat spreads through Virgil's cheeks. He can smell the other's cologne..

"S-sure, just let me ask someone to pick my bike up.."

"Great!" Roman grabs his arm and makes his way through the crowd before getting to the entrance.

Shaking wildly, Virgil dials a number on his phone.

"Hey, um Liam?"

_"Heyo Virge, it's been a while need me to get Xander to check out your bike?"_

He fidgets with his sleeves and sighs, eyes looking down.

"No, I was hoping you could pick my bike up for me? It's a long story, but Leora said that you're house is near my school so.."

_"Sure thing! Make sure to send me the address and remember: DO THE GAYS HONOR! Also you have to sit down and chat with us when you come to pick your bike up! It's been forever since I've seen your emo gaytritious face!"_

Another sigh. This time of relief. "Yeah okay. Thanks again Liam."

With a quick hang up and address sent, they're ready to go.

Roman gestures to his car. "Hop in Set It Emo!"

"Right."

—

Roman's heartbeat was so loud he couldn't think.

_He looks nice. Well he always looks nice. Wait. No. Ughh._

"You good Princey?" Virgil looks at him, one arm on the window ceil.

_I'm so close to him.._

"Yeah."

Silence overtakes the car.

"Why'd you want to hang out anyways?" Virgil looks out the window, lips pursed.

_Because I think I like you._

"I don't know. You're just fun to hang out with." He moves his eyes from the road for a glimpse of a second to Virgil. Said boy is red faced and not meeting the others eyes.

Looking back at the road, Roman raises an eyebrow. "What? Surprised?"

Virgil squirms, face still a cherry color. "I've just never really had friends before.."

Roman pulls into his driveway. "Seriously? I should invite Patton and Logan over too then. They'll gladly be your friend. Especially Patton."

"Sure..?"

He gets out and walks around to the other's side, opening the door. "After you, My Chemically Imbalanced Romance."

Virgil scoffs, small smile on his face.

"Sure thing Princey."

 


	12. Lovely Laughter

"Awwwwww those two are cuddling!"

Logan looks over his book and sees Patton squealing at animal vines. His phone vibrates next to him.

"Patton, love, you're phone is ringing."

Said boy pauses his video and grabs his phone. "Thanks Lo!"

"Hellooo?" He bounces in his seat. "Oh really? That'd be fun. I'll ask Lo!" He looks over at Logan. "Roman is asking for us to come over to hang out with him and his new friend!"

"That sounds pleasant. Confirm our coming to Roman."

—

Virgil taps nervously at his knee.

_Why do I feel this way? I'm not crushing on him. Definitely not._

"You good there, Beaut?" Roman nudges his shoulder.

_The heck? Beaut?_

"What does that even mean?"

"Oh it's a.. guy from Ancient history that people thought was a dark wizard."

The two laugh, the taller one's laugh drenched in nervousness.

The doorbell rings. Roman gets up and goes to answer it. While the other sits there, ignoring the glaring twisting in his stomach.

"Hello!"

He glances up to see Patton.

"Hey.."

—

Roman, Logan, and Patton all talk about past experiences, Virgil not paying attention anymore.

He sighs and feels a nudge on his shoulder. He looks over at Roman mouthing the words, "What's up?"

With a quick, "Nothing." mouthed back, he continues to stare in thought at his shoes.

Then a specific comment perks his attention.

"There's a specific book I read about Japanese Folklore." Logan adjusts his glasses.

Virgil looks at him. "I've heard that most of those are really creepy."

"Creepy doesn't necessarily mean uninteresting." The other replies bluntly.

"No, I actually love creepy stories. Do you still have that book?" A small smile makes its way onto his face.

"Actually I think I do, most likely in the unpacked boxes we have in our apartment," He smiles, even if it is somewhat awkward. "Would you like to borrow it?"

"That'd be nice, yeah."

—

"I've never tried baking, but I'm sure it'd be fun." Virgil nods, agreeing to a 'Baking Invite' from Patton.

Roman grins at his friends getting along with Virge. And luckily, the other doesn't seem to realize that beaut is another word for beautiful.

Virgil gives a small giggle, even though it's covered by his palm, at some pun Patton made.

_Oh god, he's so cute._

He's noticed recently some of Virgil's quirks. Like he covers his smiles and laughs with his hand, how he tugs at the strings of his hoodie when he's nervous, and many more. Each one only causes Roman to become more of a flustered puddle, in love with this amazing human being.

_I just want to kiss him._

But he doesn't.

—

Virgil waves goodbye to Logan and Patton, feeling closer with the pair.

_I finally have friends._

That brings a small smile and a happy sigh from him.

"You want a ride home?" Roman calls.

He nods. "Yeah, thanks."

As they drive home in conversation, Virgil can't help but feel his heart beat go crazy at Roman's full-hearted laughter, his small dimples, each and every clever comment.

_Oh god. I am definitely crushing on him. Great._

"Night Venust."

_Again? He really has a larger vocabulary then you'd think._

"Do I even want to know what that means?" Virgil rolls his eyes.

Roman shrugs. "Maybe, I don't know. You can probably guess."

With a small smirk, the two part ways.

If only the moment could've lasted longer.

_If only we saw what was coming._


	13. Pretentious Possibilites

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TF: Vomiting, Panic Attacks

Roman groans as his shoes click along with each step. His humanities class had completely wrecked him over. Stupid essays.

His stomach whirls as he passes Virgil in the crowded halls. The sight of that purple hoodie and those shimmering eyes causes his stomach to fill with butterflies.

_I almost forgot how nervous and nice it feels to have a crush.._

"Roman!" He glances next to him to see Deegan. "Can you help me with something,  _buddy?_ "

Hmm..

The snake-like grin uneases him, however he nods anyhow. Deegan leads him to an empty computer lab. Jaxson and Liam (some of his minions) follow suit in entering. Popping out of no where seemingly.

"So we are doing a project about teens opinions on  _Hitler._ So Roman, could you please fill is in?" He grins.

_Hitler.. won't they get the same answers from everyone?_

Shrugging it off, he nods, ignoring Liam getting a voice recorder out.

"I hate him. Hitler is a monster who harmed many. I'm glad that he is no longer alive. I hope that helps.." He lets out a chuckle, this entire situation feeling off, but he doesn't know why.

Deegan smiles crookedly and practically slithers out of the room with his goons.

_Odd.._

—

Virgil feels his lungs clutch at his throat, nervous worms skittering along his throat and stomach.

A small shove pushes him against the wall next to the bathroom doors. He glances up through his bangs at a recognizable snide smirk.

_Deegan.._

_"_ What do you want?" No response. Instead his other puppets show up and crowd around him, causing him to back up into the bathroom. They shut the door and all grin at him.

The strange smiles spike at his heart, making it beat faster as his half broken mind tries to figure out what is going on.

"We wanted to share  _something_  with you.." Deegan hisses out. His eyes darted around Virgil's face before closing in on his eyes.

"Okay...?"

And then Jaxson hits click on something on his phone. A crackled recording plays and he hears a Deegan's voice.

"What's your opinion on  _Virgil_?"

**_What.._ **

That makes his breathing stop, all nerves at the edge of their seats to see what he was about to learn.

"I hate him. He is a monster. I hope that he is no longer alive." Roman's voice filters out. An unknown opinion becoming clear.

The small apple, Virgil had eaten this morning now is bubbling uneasily in his stomach.

_That's what.. he thinks of me?_

He doesn't pay attention to the now blurry figures leaving the bathroom. All he can do is listen to the voice blaring in his head like a siren.

**He hates you.**

**Hates you.**

**He thinks your a monster like everyone else.**

**Everything was a lie. A joke to embarrass you.**

**You think he would really like you?**

His head fogs over with busy thoughts crowding his mind until it feels heavy as if it is a heavy bucket of water.

Virgil feels the apple crawling back up and he crashes through a stall, barely making it.

Misery and anxiousness bubbles out his mouth, an open wound left for the empty bathroom to watch. For all the dead spirits or creatures that may be lurking there to laugh and enjoy, happy for such a good show.

Once his system is empty, nothing left to wretch out, he leans against the stall wall. His senses numb, the smell of his own filthy substances going away. His head however is not any different.

The voices ache, fighting for control, clanging and crashing through his skull. Each word knocks against his bones before being bounced back against a different bone. The repetition of it would normally calm him, however it only adds to the pain burning inside him. His lungs feel like a volcano on the verge of erupting. Each curled, uneven breath banging against the chamber inside. So he holds his breath, hoping to sever the incoming eruption. Everything feels stiff and narrow as dark spots through his vision. Hot acid stings his face, adding to the overwhelming mess of sensations that make him sick.

Silence overtakes him as his body forces him to let go of his breath, instead to close his eyes, body collapsing.

Collapsing into the arrowing agony of sleep.

—

Roman waits for a while at the front entrance.

_Where is he? We were going to hang out._

A voice creeps through his thoughts, putting him at an uneasy state.

"Virgil said not to give you this, but we thought you should have it.."

He spins around to stare into the acid green eyes of Deegan.

"Show me what?"

_Since when are Deegan and Virgil friends?_

Deegan nods his head to Jaxson beside him. Said boy clicks something on his phone and the snake-like man's voice plays.

"What do you think of Roman? You seem to like him.."

That peaks Roman's interest.  _Does Virgil.. like me back?_

Then his favorite voice says words he never likes to hear.

"I hate him. You should know that by now.."

_Virgil.. hates me?_

His heart cracks.

_Am I not good enough for him?_

Deegan sighs and frowns. "I know. It hurt  _me so much_ when he said that. I can't believe he played you like that."

The pair slither off.

_Play me?_

_He..._

Anger creeps along mixing with his insecurity and heart brokenness.

"I need to find Virgil."


	14. Hatred Of Hearts

Virgil wakes up to beeping from his phone.

_Did I fall asleep in the bathroom?_

**Princey** 💕 **- > Me**

**Princey** 💕: Virgil.  
 **Princey** 💕: We need to talk.  
 **Princey** 💕: Meet me by the right of the school.

Even in his drowsy state, Virgil feels his nerves spike.

_Roman wants to talk with me?_   
_Oh yeah... he doesn't know that I know he hates me.._

With a sigh, he gets up, wiping the tears threatening to spill. He needs to get through this.. and he will.. hopefully,

His short walk manages to give him some time to think.

_What could he possibly want to talk about? His messages seemed serious.. Unless he's planning to finally admit to the truth? Is he going to ditch me? Leave me to rot?_

His heart thumps in his chest, a rhythm to calm his overwhelming head.

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

He walks slowly out the exit to see Roman looking sternly at him.

"Was this just a joke?"

_What?_

Looking to the side, Virgil bites his lip. "What?"

"Was it fun to mess with my time and my heart?" The other growls. His eyes were lit aflame with burning agony and hate.

_He hates me that much? He thinks I hurt_ **_him?!_ **

A sudden anger takes over the emo boy. How dare Roman get mad at him after what he himself did?

"Your heart?! What about me?! You have no right to get mad at me when you played with me this entire time! You're just as bad as the rest of them you liar!" Virgil yells, blinking back the bubbling water in his eyes.

"Me a liar?! You're the one who was gossiping with Deegan and his goons about me! If you didn't want to be my friend then you should've just stayed alone being a dumb emo like always!" Roman shouts, his fists clenched tightly.

Virgil walks closer to the other, anger in both their eyes as they glare at each other.

"WELL IF YOU HATED ME, THEN  _YOU_  SHOULD HAVE STAYED BEING AN EGOTISTICAL BRAT!" He spats.

Something flickers in the other boy's eyes. "YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT MY WORLD LOOKS LIKE!"

That makes him snap. "WELL YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING! YOU DON'T KNOW ME, YOU DON'T KNOW THIS OR THAT, AND YOU DEFINITELY DON'T KNOW WHAT MY LIFE IS LIKE! YOU HAVE A NICE PERFECT LIFE WERE NO ONE HATES YOU, NO ONE TRIES TO HURT YOU UNTIL YOU'RE DEAD! BECAUSE  ** _YOU ARE JUST A STUPID PRINCE THAT EVERYONE ACTUALLY HATES_**!"

Slap.

Virgil's eyes widen at the new pain in his cheek.

"Fuck you, you think you know everything, but  ** _you're just a little moronic monster who no one loves!"_** Roman spats, face inches from the other.

This time, Virgil punches him. No slap, no words, just a punch. He glares at the boy on the ground.

"Yeah, maybe I am, but at least I'm not  _you_."

With that, Virgil bolts down the road to go home.

_I'm not going to make the same mistake again._

_—_

Roman glares at the figure walking away. As he can't see Virgil anymore, he lets the tears he's been holding back out.

Sobs rack his body, his fingers shaky as he types his best friends for help.

**Me - > DadPat , Calculator**

**Me:** i need someone to pick em up  
 **Me:** me

**Calculator:** We're on our way.


	15. Arising Afterthoughts

Virgil sighs, ignoring the voice outside his door.

"Virgil honey, dinner is ready."

He ignores it.

_I deserve to starve.._

**_Good.._ **

_I don't have anything left.._

**_Good.._ **

_I have no one._

His heart beat continued to throb loudly in his ears. He hated the feeling of being lied to. Ever since middle school... It had become something that broke him, made him feel like screaming and burning.

~~

_Virgil stares at the golden flaked eyes in front of him._

_His best friend._

_"C'mon Virge, let's head to the park.."_

_The rest of his friends joined them at the entrance and the group walked, talking about anything they wanted to._

_When they reached their destination, it was empty and peaceful. The group made their way to the benches._

_"What now?" Virgil asked to no one in particular. Yet his eyes moved to his favorite person there. The one with brown hair, tips of some strands blonde._

_Said boy smirked. "You mentioned how you were gay a few weeks ago remember?"_

_A bubble of curiosity popped in him, replaced with uncertainty. "Yeah..?"_

_One of his other friends grinned. "We wanted you to have a gift for it."_

_Then a coldness._

_Virgil looked down at himself to see a rainbow slushie covering him head to toe._

_"Wh-why?"_

_His 'best friend' smirked, his pupils small as he crazily laughed. "We wanted to see you cry..." He laughed maniacally, twisting and looking everywhere._

_With hair sticking to his face, he moved to run away, only for someone to trip him. He screamed and feel face first into the grass. The faint sound of a camera click sounded. And he looked up in terror._

_Green acid eyes flicker with gold. A snake like grin._

_Deegan stared back at him._

_~~_

Virgil put a finger to his cheek, to feel wet tears streaming down.

—

Roman sipped his hot cocoa glumly.

"What happened kiddo?"

He glanced to the side. Throat dry. "Virgil was playing with me this whole time.. he hates me.."

A silence. He doesn't notice Logan and Patton share concerned looks.

Roman sniffs. "Listen, I don't want to go into it anymore than that right now, but can I.. just stay here for the night?"

Patton pats his back. "Of course kiddo."


	16. Word Wounds

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

The sound of dripping water fills the bone shaking silence.

**Why are you here?**

The sound wavers through the smell of blood.

**Your parents didn't want you, no one does.**

He feels numb to the pain on his arms. Numb to the voices. Numb to everything. Nothing matters anymore.

His stomach growls and grumbles. When is the last time he ate? Thursday? No.. farther back...

Whatever. It's probably fine.

**Roman doesn't.**

_Yeah. He doesn't. Why would he?_

It's as if yin and yang are fighting in his head. Yet both are hurt and broken, they are still fighting for different goals.

He isn't sure which one is right..

Virgil sighs and lets go of the simplistic silence to start cleaning up. He cleans his new small wounds before wrapping them. The dripping stops when he turns the faucet off. Using a rag, he scrubs away the blood.

**_Perfect._ **

His thin fingers curl around his dark headphones.

Music.  
Music..

When the new weight is on his being, a sense of comfort can be found. Not everything has changed.

He plays Billie Eilish's new album and Green Day's Nimrod album. Lyrics and melodies fill his ears and distract him from misery.

'I know you don't care,  
But can you listen?'

The specific song 8 resides in him.

'Wore my heart out on a chain  
Around my neck, but now it's missin''

**It's your own fault.**

**Roman doesn't love you because of your own mistakes.**

Who knows anymore?

—

Roman bites his lip anxiously. It's an odd feeling, but it's what he is getting right now due to the strange look Analise has on her face. Alongside with Patton and Logan. The three had decided to visit him today, and so far none had said a word.

Patton is the first to speak. "Kiddo, we want to help.. but to do that we need to know what happened." He smiles encouragingly, before sighing briskly. "It's been nearly two weeks. You have to talk to us kiddo."

The words sink in slowly, each one a spark along the other's skin. He averts his gaze.

How is he supposed to explain what happened? He doesn't even fully understand it himself. All he really knows is that Virgil hates him.

"We were going to meet up that day.. he was running late and I.. ran into Deegan." He chooses his words carefully, unsure of how to process the events himself.

At the mention of Deegan, Analise stiffens. "Then?"

"He told me that there was something Virgil didn't want him to show me, but he felt the need to.." A small part of him remembers how odd the situation felt from the start. However after Virgil's voice with those damned words filled his mind, he grew to ignore it.

"He played a recording of Virgil saying he hates me and that Deegan knows that.. and stuff like that.." Roman sighs, eyes moving along the floor.

"I went to try and find Virgil and he yelled.. I yelled.. and then I slapped him and then he punched me and left.."

Silence.

More silence.

"Are you that gullible?"

He glances up confusingly at Logan.

"Think about it for a moment, I know that might be hard for your smaller brain, but try anyways." The other demands.

Ignoring the insult, Roman thinks it over.

_He hates me. He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me. He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me. He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me. He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me.He hates me. Wait...._

_ He _ _did it.._

"DEEGAN!" Confusion turns into knowledge.

Logan nods. "I see you've started to put pieces together. I have a acclamation that it might've been him."

_No no. He doesn't get it.._

"No.. you.. he did do it. I know for a fact. It's the only true answer."

Patton looks at him, worried. "What do you mean by that kiddo?"

He shakes his head, not looking at any of them. "Deegan had came up to me for some Hitler essay and I said words of hate.. Virge acted as if he had been told I hated him!!"

Analise puts a hand on his shoulder while Patton gave him a hug to calm him.

"This isn't the first time Deegan's hurt Virge this badly." Eyes move to focus on Analise.

"Deegan and Virge used to be friends. Then one day they weren't. Eventually he talked to me about it and apparently that  _snake_  had lied and was never his friend."

Each word each thought works together to form a new goal.

"I need to find Virgil."

Roman rapidly types the name in his phone, waiting for the familiar contact to pop up un-

A memory does instead.

"Crap I deleted his contact and number of my phone."

Patton and Logan glance at each other nervously. "We don't have his number either."

Analise bites her lip. "I do, but I doubt he'll listen to anything  _any of us_ tell him by phone. This needs to be in person, that way he can't run when he sees who it is."

He nods along.  _In person.._

"Hey Ana do you have his address?"

"Yea."


	17. Risky Rains

The sound of raindrops hitting the solid ground below him, it gives him a sense of knowing.

It keeps him remembering he's still here, that he's alive and he needs to be cautious. That he needs to pay attention in the case of staying alive.

It's not the only thing that reminds him of such a thing though.

The twitching cold of his body, the honking of car horns. Don't forget the faint sound of MCR playing from his earbuds. There's also the feel of his stress ball inside his hoodie pocket.

Life gives him a multitude of reminders.

Water splashes with each step he takes. He doesn't know where he's going in particular. All Virgil knows is that he needed fresh air. So a walk never hurt anybody right?

**Ha. Don't make me laugh. There's millions of ways you can die due to a 'walk.'**

_Shut up you stupid voice._

And for once it obliges.

Once he reaches the bridge, he moves farther to the side, away from the moving vehicles.

His eyes dart to the side, taking it the view of the overcast lake. The city looks so pretty in the morning, he wonders why he never paid it any mind before.

Virgil hops up and sits on the rail, legs dangling down. The sense of fear that he might slip aches in his throat, but he ignores it.

He leans his head against the structural pillar beside him. Wind brushes his soiled cheeks.

As a new song bubbles from his earbuds, he whisper-sings the lyrics aloud to himself. It's impossible to hear in the loud booming world, but he doesn't mind.

_"At the end of the world or the last thing,"_

His grip on the railing below him is tight as ever. A unfamiliar feeling of calm and freedom fills him to the brim through this moment. He closes his eyes, hoping it lasts forever.

_"You are never coming home, never coming home,"_

Then the memories repeat. They always do. He wonders when he'll finally stop gaining a profound hurt in his heart when he thinks of it.

_"And all the things that you never ever told me,"_

The world has beat him down so many times. Does anyone even want him here anymore? The answer his head tells him is to that question brings cool acid to his eyes.  _Cool.. strange._

_"At the top of my lungs in my arms she dies,"_

Tears stream down his face, but he chooses to ignore them as well. His eyes open to look at the world again.

_"And all the wounds that are ever gonna scar me,"_

What if I jumped now? That question echoes through his head.

Virgil sighs. He looks down at the water below him. It's deep. Fear trickles through his veins. He's always been scared of death, but he also yearns for it sometimes. The latter is extra prominent as of now.

It's strange how a person can fear and love the same thing.

_"If I fall_   
_If I fall down,"_

He pauses his song. With a flick of his thumb, it feels like the whole world pauses too. Virgil bites his lip and takes a deep breath.

_Time to let go._

His grip loosens as he moves his hands to his knees. He leans forward until he feels gravity slowly take his body down.

_WAIT NO!_

**Ha, we win.**

Virgil's eyes widen, sobs forming. He doesn't want to die! But it's too late, his body is already beginning to fall, the world slow in his eyes.

What has he done?!

—

Roman knocks frantically at the dark oak door.

A woman opens the door. Her hair is white as snow, attire purple and smile inviting. "Hello, how can I help you?"

"I'm a.." The words catch in his throat. He sighs and starts again. "I'm a friend of Virgil's. I was hoping I could talk to him? Is he here?"

The woman looks at him in shock. "Oh I um- Virgil-san hasn't mentioned any friends before.." Her face contorts in a strange form of understanding.

"I'm afraid he isn't here however. He left about twenty minutes ago saying he was heading on a walk." She smiles, apology written in the creases.

He nods. "Do you perhaps have any idea of where he could be walking to?"

She shakes her head. "Maybe try the bridge? He likes walking across it. Something about the feeling of strength."

Roman nods, thanking her, before his feet take him into a sprint. His gut is telling him he needs to get there fast.

_A bridge? Sounds worrying.._

His head flips through possible starters. How is he supposed to even begin to explain the shit hole the pair had fallen into?

The beating rain against his face only moves his body faster. He sprints along the sidewalk, adrenaline pumping in his veins.

_I need to fix this._

So he moves faster and faster, lungs pounding for air, needing it,  _hungry_  for it.

Once he reaches the bridge, his uneasy mind races. His gaze moves along each part, looking for the possible emo.

He spots a figure sitting on the railing.

_Oh no.._

Panic fills his body to the brim. Roman huffs, sprinting towards the boy. He sees Virgil begin to lean forward, letting go of the railing.

_No.. NO._

As the darker boy's body begins to move towards the water, Roman leaps forward trying to grab him, save him, help him in time.

"VIRGIL!"


	18. Stopped Suffering

Ringing. As if sirens are blasting in his ears. Yet, he doesn't feel dead. Though, it does take longer to drown..

"Virgil.."

Said boy opens his eyes. He's not in water. He's instead being pulled up and over the railing by Roman.

It's odd because he can't hear the cars, or the rain, or really anything.. except his own frantic heartbeat and the voice of someone who he doesn't even want to see.

Why would he?

His heart is cracked and bruised. Lungs dried and shriveled. All thanks to love being so fucking risky.

Once the other has successfully pulled him up and over the rail, he hugs him.

Virgil doesn't hug back. He just stands there, numb. The ringing continues along with a sick swirling in his chest.

"I'm so sorry." Roman whispers in his ear. The sound is soft and vibrant. Even so, it does nothing to fix his broken state.

Silence echoes between them. Roman staring at Virgil and Virgil staring at the ground.

"You're not allowed to apologize to me." His voice cracks halfway, but he continues. "You hate me and you should hate me. I know what I said hurt you before and.. even before that I wasn't and still am, not a good person." Virgil bites his lip until copper tasting red bubbles out.

Roman shifts uncomfortably. "Virgil.." He sighs and moves closer, lifting the other's head.

The taller boy's eyes are full of too many emotions to name, each one trying to wrap around his own head.

"Whatever you heard.. the.. recording... It wasn't real. Deegan tricked both of us. He said I was helping with a Hitler report they were doing, but obviously I was being an idiot to believe that. And I got a recording like you probably did too.."

.

..

...

His mind takes minutes to process. An aching cold still resinating in his body, but the numb shell around him cracks. Only a little.

"You.. you don't hate me?" His voice is quiet, a mumble so small he doesn't know if the other caught it.

But he did.

"I don't." Roman sighs and looks in the other's eyes. "I never did.. I.. I liked you. A lot. I still do.."

The numb shell breaks. Into millions of invisible pieces.

Tears start to bubble in his eyes.

"You? You? You..? You like me?" His voice is uneven and cracked, but he manages to finish his thought. The warm brown eyes that are looking into his own swirl with a new found hope.

"Yes. Why wouldn't I?"

"Well I mean.. I-"

Roman sighs. "No don't finish that statement. It'll just be a bunch of lies."

The following actions are in silence. Roman grabs his hand and leads him away from the bridge to a small bench in the park just left of it. They both sit and the silence remains.

Until one of the two breaks it.

"I like you too.."

Virgil mumbles quietly before sniffling and hugging himself. It's cold. At least the tears keep his face warm.

The other smiles and glances at Virgil before frowning. "Oh you've been out here long.. Hold on. Stay here, my cars down this way and I'm going to go get it." Then he's running down the sidewalk.

Silence.

**He isn't coming back. Why would he when he can leave and not have to deal with you.**

_Shut up. I don't want your shit right now._

He leans back against the bench, letting his body go limp, before closing his eyes.

—

Roman runs a hand through his hair, opening his car door with the other.

_He likes me back. He's alive. We're going to be okay._

The drive to where he left Virgil is short. When he gets there, the emo boy is lying against the bench, eyes closed.

"Virgil?"

Said boy opens his eyes to peek at Roman. When he focuses on the car, he sits up and walks over. Then he gets in.

The two drive off. They sit in silence. That is until a soft snore catches his attention. He glances to his right to see Virgil asleep.

_Guess that really drained him._

The car ride back is quiet. Peaceful bliss. It continues and he eases into it. It fills him with a sense of joy.

When they reach his house, he nudges Virgil's arm.

"Virge?"

"Mm?" He grumbles sleepily . His face is smushed against the window arm rest.

Roman resists the urge to kiss his forehead. "You need to wake up so you can change out of your wet clothes."

The emo boy groans and gets out, yawning quietly. He fumbles through the front door alongside the princely boy before plopping onto the couch.

"You mentioned changing.. I don't have clothes though here?" He frowns.

The other waves him off before quickly walking upstairs.

—

Virgil sighs, leaning back into the cushioned back of the couch.

When Roman walks back downstairs, he's dressed in pjs and is carrying a new pair of clothes.

_Shit._

"Here, we are around the same size so these should fit." He motions to a door down the hall. "You can change in the bathroom."

The emo boy sighs and follows Roman's directions.

The clothing fits fine thankfully. When he walks back outside, he sees the other staring at him, lips pursed.

"We should talk."


	19. Recovering Remedies

Roman watches as Virgil enters the bathroom.

His mouth goes dry as he actually processes what happened a mere twenty or so minutes ago.

_He tried to commit.. tried to.. he.._

Even his own head can't think about it. A sigh rattles from his throat when he realizes that no matter what happens, they need to talk about what happened.

So when the other boy re-enters the living room, he stares into his eyes. He secretly hopes that the other will be able to tell how hard it is for him to start this conversation. He knows the emo boy must've gone to darker places than he thought to reach that idea.. And a part of him is scared to know how dark those places might be.

"We should talk."

Virgil's eyes darken. "About.. what?" His lips quirk down, his body unmoving from his standing position at the entrance of the room.

"Virge.. Talk to me? You almost.. you were so close to being gone!" His heart leaps in his throat, causing each word to be drenched in his syrup of feeling. "I almost lost you!"

A guilt crawls up the other's spine. He looks to the side, biting his lip. "I-.. okay. Fine." And with that he sits down.

Silence echoes between them.

Roman sighs. "I know you're not okay. So I'll give you a chance to tell me, actually tell me what you're feeling."

Silence.

"Virgil?"

Said boy's head is turned the other way, lips pursed. "I'm just tired.."

_This isn't going anywhere.. I need to know how to help him. I didn't want to have to do this.._

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm going to need you to take your shirt off."

The purple-haired male freezes. His face goes dark, eyes wide. "I-..No." He moves away from Roman.

However, the prince boy goes at the other, grabbing his arms. "I'm sorry Virge, but I need to know how to help."

So as both turn sad, lips down-turned in a deep frown, he pulls up the other's sleeves.

Thin, scar littered arms are underneath.

_Oh god. I can see his bones and veins.. and the scars.. are.. Oh my god._

A small whimper escapes Virgil. "I didn't want you to know.."

Silence.

_Why would you do this to yourself?_

Roman stands up and goes to his kitchen, making soup.

"What are you doing?"

" _I'm making you food."_ His voice echoes, a statement.

—

Virgil stares at the small bowl of soup, his stomach and mind at war.

"Virge, you need to eat."

_I know.. I know.._

**You're not skinny enough. No eating.**

His eyes glance to the side, unsure of what to do.

"Please Resplendent.."

The others voice is what does it. With a shaky hand, the emo boy picks up the spoon. Each action is slow, him finally putting the spoonful of soup in his mouth.

_It tastes good._

His mind grows foggy, sleep and fatigue from all the stress of the day kicks in and he passes out.


	20. Fluffy Forever (FINALE)

The pair sit at a table. 

The coffee shop is nearly empty at this time of day.

Silence overtakes them until Roman speaks. "So, are we.. like a thing?"

Virgil shrugs. "I'm not sure. I think we have to go on a date first."

"Isn't that what this is supposed to be?"

The other shrugs again, leaning back against the chair.  "I think so, but I don't know. I've never been on a date before."  
  
Roman laughs, an unknown feeling of nervousness in him. "Yeah, me neither."

His mind clouds with possible ideas, ways to make Virgil feel loved so he never hurts himself again. No one with a good heart like his should be hurt, nonetheless be hurting themselves.

"Hey wanna hear a secret?"

The emo boy raises an eyebrow. "Huh?"

He smirks. "All those really unique words I called you? They mean beautiful."

Virgil goes bright red. "Seriously?!"

"Yeah, I was trying to be subtle." Roman laughs.

They sit in silence for a bit.

The other, with a complete blank face, grabs the princely boy's attention. "I'm lost."

"How are you-"

"Can you give me directions to your heart?" Virgil winks.

Processing..

"Wha!?" Roman feels his face warm. "I didn't know you were smooth?"

A shrug. "Like peanut butter, don't worry you can be my jelly." Another wink.

Everything is Roman's brain slowly breaks apart, his face growing a bright red.

"You didn't."

The other smirks, amusement written all over his face. "Do what?"

He laughs. "Anyways, I'm pretty sure on dates we're supposed to 'get to know each other better.'"

"Right, that makes sense. So aside from being sexy, what do you do for a living?"

Now it's turn for Virgil to go completely red. "T-That's not fair."

"What can dish it, but can't take it?"

"I-"

"Did it hurt? When you fell from heaven?" Roman interrupts.

Virgil shrugs, face still red. "No, but I did scratch my knee crawling my way up from hell."

"Oh ha ha."

They stare at each other with starry eyes.

Roman smiles. "So we like each other."

"Yep." He pops the p.

"And we're both single."

"Yep." Another pop.

"Will you be my boyfriend Virgil?" 

Said boy lets out a breathy laugh. "At least buy me food first, gosh."

So, Roman stands up, making his way to the line. Before though, he asks, "What do you want?"

Virgil's eyes widen in surprise. "I was just- Okay then, something small."

Obviously, the princely boy gets the biggest muffin he can find. The past few days was filled with getting Virgil on the right track towards being better, but the mindset hasn't changed.

When he returns he hands the muffin over and sits back down. "Will you be my boyfriend?"

"Hold up let me see how good this is, I'll decide from that." The other says in sarcasm. 

He takes a bite before looking at Roman. "Of course you big idiot."

Before he can take another bite, Roman leans forward, grabbing Virgil's chin. 

The kiss lasts around a minute, but it felt like forever. The rush of love, and feeling of ecstasy.  

"I'll love you forever Virgil."

\--

(EXTRA)

The pair looks at each other, waiting for the phone to stop ringing and be picked up.

"Hey kiddos, what's up?"

Roman takes a deep breath before speaking. "We're dating."

"FINALLY."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Sorry the past few chapters have been short and that this ending is short, I kinda started losing ideas/motivation for this fic so I hoped you guys are pleased enough)

**Author's Note:**

> Halsey - sorry
> 
> Yes i love music


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